Time Is Too Slow
by USS Empire Crew
Summary: The Empire crew meets the Odales, a time traveling race that drafts the Empire to prevent the Quartles, the Odales's sworn ememy, from changing the past. Wacky Hotel Hijinks and Crazy Romulans ensue! Mission 11.
1. Chapter 1

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 1~_

"You know, these highly formatted reports are getting kind of annoying to proofread." 

"Tell me about it, I've been stuck reading them too." 

Cray Whickman and Karlenn Trant were, as per normal, spending their lunch break together, and on this occasion, forced to read their co-workers' reports. He sighed. 

"At least you don't have to write them too," he mumbled. She grinned. 

"Oh, poor, long suffering baby that you are," she cooed jokingly, and went back to reading, reaching over to grab her slice of pizza occasionally. A loud klaxon rang out. 

"Senior officers to the Bridge, immediately, I repeat, senior officers to the bridge." Cray saw Lieutenant Commander Nara stand up quickly on the other side of the hall, walking out quickly, a piece of stray toast in his hand to be munched. He turned to Karlenn. 

"Do I count?" he asked forlornly. She smiled. 

"Yes. Shoo," she said, and waved him off with her hands. He sighed dramatically, and stood, trying to shove his PADDs into some form of order. 

"I'll see you later, once I get off, and these reports from hell are written." He strode out of the room, and dashed into the turbo lift that Lt. Cmdr. Nara was already in. Cray sighed again in earnest. 

"Girl troubles?" Mr. Nara asked him. Cray started slightly, then sighed again. 

"Girl troubles, PADD troubles, soccer troubles, troubles in general." He turned to face the other man. "How'd you know?" Mr. Nara smiled. 

"I just know girls," he replied. "Siegfried Nara. I'm Ops." Cray nodded. 

"Uh, Cray Whickman. I think I'm in charge of Sec/Tac... Kind of by accident." Mr. Nara chuckled. 

"It's nice to meet you, you know, in person." Mr. Nara took a quick bite of the toast in his hand, and smiled. "Karlenn's always talking about you." Cray choked slightly, on what, he wasn't exactly sure, but choked all the same. Mr. Nara's smile grew a little wider. 

"Somehow I thought that was it. You know, she really likes you," he said, a hint of mischief in his voice. Cray dredged up a weak smile. 

"Well, we went to the academy together..." he said, and Mr. Nara smiled. 

"That wasn't quite what I meant, but it'll do for an interpretation." 

The turbolift arrived at the bridge. 

On the viewscreen a large star was in view, and the Captain was standing in the middle of the bridge as if she were a rabbit who had just had a dern squirrel come up and steal her lettuce. And as a side note, Sarah does not like lettuce, but this is a metaphor. 

"All senior officers have reported in, Captain," Nara noted. She did not turn around but gave him a wave to note she had heard him. 

"Mr. Midori, how long until we reach that planet?" 

"Um, ten minutes? Yeah, ten point 23 minutes." 

Cray listened to the cool questions and almost cooler answers and began to worry. He definitely wasn't as experienced or as knowledgeable as the officers around him. He could only hope that the Captain would ask nothing of him. 

"Mr. Whickman, what are the specifications of the structure generating the tractor beam?" 

"Er-" _Calm down,_ he told himself. "It is unarmed and unshielded, Captain." 

"Recommendations?" 

"We'll be in phaser range in one minute. Of course, that supposes you aren't curious, Captain." 

"I am always curious, Mr. Whickman. Have the phasers ready, but don't shoot anything just yet. Mr. Stellar, have an escape course plotted and ready to go." 

"Aye, ma'am." 

"Oh, uh, yes, ma'am." Cray actually felt a bit better now. He had done it. Maybe with a few bumps, but he hadn't messed things up too badly. 

A short while later, Nara spoke, "Captain, we're being hailed." 

"Finally. Onscreen." At this point she sat down, and Cray noticed Dr. McCoy was occupying the seat usually reserved for the XO. "This is Captain Sarah Cosmo of the USS _Empire_. We request you release our ship and let us continue peacefully on our way." 

=/\=We are the Odales, Captain Sarah Cosmo of the USS _Empire_. Please, do not be alarmed. We mean you no harm.=/\= 

"If you mean us no harm then why must you use a tractor beam instead of asking us to come to your planet?" 

=/\=Captain Sarah Cosmo, it is imperative that you and your ship come to our planet without delay.=/\= 

"May I ask why?" 

=/\=It will all be explained when you arrive.=/\= 

"They cut the connection, Captain," Nara said, even though it was relatively obvious they had. 

"Well, I suppose we're in for a surprise, then. Mr. Stellar, Mr. Whickman, I want your fingers hovering over those commands." At this point the Captain sat down and began conversing in hushed tones with Dr. McCoy. Cray swallowed. Today was just going to be one of those days. 

***** 

Aerial's fingers hovered nervously above her controls. She wriggled her fingers in anticipation of the Captain's next orders. She was apprehensive, of course, she hated being pulled in by tractor beams. She wanted to be in control, to know she was the one who was driving the ship. That was why she got such a thrill from being at the Helm - she and only she was at the wheel. The _Empire_ would go wherever she wanted it to, with Sarah's permission, of course. The doohickey blinked, and the red little light caught Aerial's eye. _That's really...unusual.._. she thought, noticing the blink again. 

"O Captain, My Captain...what do we know about these Orgal-y- whatever they want to be called-" 

"Odales?" Sig offered. 

"Yeah, these Odales. Have we dealt with them before?" 

"No." Sarah responded, "Why?" 

"'Cause they're pulling us in awful fast. They must really want to talk to us - they're going to pull this baby apart if they go any faster..." 

***** 

Keei blinked. Tractor beam? Not good. Pulled apart? Even worse. "Um...I've..." 

"Save that line for when we need it Keei," Katana said leaning back in what was officially known as "Her Chair." 

"Ehh.. Okay...but I really do-" 

"Save it." 

"Yes'm." 

The short officer reached absentmindedly into one of hidden pockets and pulled out a bag of M&Ms. If she was going to die, she was going to die on a chocolate rush darn it! 

***** 

As Katana was being sucked further and further into the thingy-madoodle of death, that was apparently trying to shake them apart like a magic 8 ball, most of her thoughts were occupied by one thing. 

And it wasn't even what most people would think it was. 

It was mostly based on how freakishly uncomfortable her chair was. 

Honestly, one, since it had been quite a while since they'd had a first officer, so, no one had sat in it. So it didn't even have a butt groove. Secondly, the thing was harder than a scone left out for a week. Which, she mused, may actually be the same hardness as a diamond. Also, completely disregarding the butt groove, it was oddly shaped, so that no matter where she sat on it, it was excruciatingly uncomfortable. 

"The second we have a moment, before _anyone_ has to sit in this chair again, we are getting it replaced. I don't care if I have to rip it out of the floor myself," she muttered under her breath. She heard Sarah snicker slightly. 

"Oh, laugh it up, dork face," Tana mumbled at her. 

"I just find it amusing," Sarah had a small smirk carefully etched into her face. "That while we're about to die, _you_ are bothered by how uncomfortable your chair is." Tana glared at her. 

***** 

Aerial shook her head with a smile. An inch from death and the crew could still manage to joke. Although Tana seemed to be really serious about that chair... 

"Hey Sarah? Are we going to, um, do anything about this?" 

"Anything you can do?" 

"I tried pulling up already. Unless you get us some serious power from who knows where in engineering, we're in trouble." 

"Hmm." Sarah really didn't seem concerned, which worried Aerial to no end. As she started her last attempt to conjure an escape plan, the whole crew was thrown forward. The ship had come to an abrupt stop right before impacting with the Odales vessel. 

"Well, I guess that works." Keei laughed nervously. 

Aerial seemed confused, "Sarah, did you know that was going to happen?" 

"Nope. But I figured something like that would." 

"Why?" 

"You're so naïve, Aerial," Katana offered, "Sarah's one of the main characters – we never die. At least not like that. We always have to go out more valiantly." 

"Oh. Of course. Why didn't I think of that? Around here, the craziest explanation is usually the correct one." 

***** 

As seconds ticked by, Cray seemed to remember old Professor Buttypete telling them, "Not only is it very rude, but also rather dangerous not to signal a ship as soon as you have finished towing them in. They could get annoyed with you and start firing. The same goes if you're being towed. If they don't signal you, you don't _technically_ have to ask any questions." Cray supposed Captain Cosmo hadn't had Professor Buttypete; otherwise she might have been demanding an explanation by now. And then there was the fact that every subsequent teacher Cray had spent extra time telling each class the exact opposite. The point of this train of thought was to wonder why they were just sitting here. 

Then he noticed the Captain was quite busy vehemently (for a Vulcan) imposing some rule or regulation upon Katana. As they spoke quickly, Cray strained to hear. Then he almost fell over the front of his console and that was the end of that. His curiosity was satisfied, however, when Katana turned to Sig and said, "Can we please find out what the King of the Peanut People wants from us?" 

I suppose this is a good place to describe the Odales. They were very pale people with coloring reminiscent of a watered down electric blue. They seemed tall and spindle-like, and quite humanoid in appearance. But the most noticeable difference between the Odales and, say, Humans is the fact that they have a remarkable cranium similar to a peanut (in shell) standing on its end. 

Sig looked at the Captain who signaled her approval. "Odales on channel." 

"On screen." 

=/\=Captain Sarah Cosmo of the USS _Empire_, welcome. Please, join us on the planet.=/\= 

"Well, first I'd—" 

Cray was quite bewildered as he and the other member of the bridge crew slowly looked at their surroundings. The room was pure white, and it was impossible to tell where it started or ended, or even from where the light was coming. 

Lt. Cmdr. Midori started running, and seemed to draw the attention of her crewmates. She kept running, even until she was very far away. At last she turned around and trotted back, distress on her childlike features. "I can't find the end!" 

"Perhaps it is not for you to find, small one of the USS _Empire_," said a voice behind them. They whirled around, putting Cray in the front. There were five Odales in the room, the one to whom they had spoken and four others. It was impossible for Cray to tell the age or gender of these people, and they were much taller in person. They were all at least 2m tall, with their previous acquaintance topping 2.5m. It was comical in a frightening sort of way when the Captain stepped forward and began to address their host. He was a full meter taller than her. 

"Why have you brought us here? I was willing to go along with the tractor beam without much of a fuss, but abducting members of my crew steps over the line," she said. Cray was impressed with the fact that she could have so much conviction despite her emotionless tone and the intimidating height difference. 

"Captain Sarah Cosmo of the USS _Empire_, we have brought you here because we need your help." 

"Our help? With what?" 

"The race from our neighboring planet, the Quartles, are attempting to change the past for their own purposes." 

"The Federation does not involve itself in local disputes." 

"You do not understand. They wish to change every past. If they succeed, your Federation will no longer exist." 

"So you know what they're going to do? Why don't you stop them?" 

"We lack your technology." 

"That doesn't make any sense. If you lack our technology, and the Quartles wish to change the past, and we don't have time travel technology, how exactly do you expect us to stop them?" 

"Again, you misunderstand us. We lack your military technology." 

"Our technology is for peacefully exploring the universe. It is not for aggressive purposes." 

"Then perhaps you would like to explore the past." 

By the time the Captain had opened up her mouth to say something, the bridge crew had been returned to their ship. Captain Cosmo sat down heavily, apparently trying to think of something they could do to get out of this mess. 

"Um, Captain?" Cmdr. Midori said timidly. 

"Keei, please." 

"I think you might want to listen to her, Captain," Lt. Cmdr. Stellar said over her shoulder. 

"What is it Keei?" 

"You're never gonna guess where we are." Keei's expression said it all, and Cray let out an involuntary groan. At this point it appeared Katana felt the urge to comment. 

"Damn Mr. Peanut." 

***** 

Keei was looking at her display screen disbelievingly "Um... at his time I am...dead...most likely. Ladies and Gents, welcome to the year, 2568." There was stunned silence around the bridge as everyone digested this bit of information. 

"So I'm all dead and wrinkly?" Katana asked in an 'I can't believe it' voice. 

Keei mulled it over for a bit "Probably." 

"Why is no one shooting at us?" Sig asked brow furrowed. Sarah shot him a 'look'. "Not that I'm complaining!" he amended hastily, "But don't we look suspicious?" 

Aerial switched to ship monitors and frowned slightly. "We should, but the peanut people messed with the ship." 

Sarah's eyes narrowed. "What?" 

Everybody winced as the icy tone rang across the bridge. Aerial hurried to elaborate, "They didn't touch anything on the ship they just installed a holographic drive that makes the ship look like a normal one for this era!" 

"Then we'd better get this over with so they can uninstall it," Sarah said peevishly. 

"Y-yes, Ma'am!" Aerial stammered, "Where to?" 

***** 

"Let's just stay here for right now and ascertain where we are. Ms. Midori, how about matching reference stars and figuring out where we are." 

"I think... Austenous IV. Federation colony, close to Romulan space. Its economy is fueled by tourism." 

"Like Risa?" asked Toru. 

"Um, yeah, except without more about the landscape." 

"No skankiness," Katana added. 

"How do _you_ know anything about Risa?" Keei asked, intrigued. 

Katana shrugged. "I know a lot of things." 

"Like that time the really funny noises were coming from the greenhouse?" Keei asked, the picture of innocence. 

"No. Not like that time." 

"As much as everyone is dying to find out what happened in the greenhouse, I think we'd better concentrate more on trying to find out what it is we need to keep from changing. Mr. Nara, can you find a news transmission or the like?" 

"Searching... Locked on to a transmission from the capital city." 

"On screen." 

A middle aged woman who appeared to be the news anchor appeared on the screen. "--ege riots have erupted to protest the talks between the Federation and Romulan governments." Images of picketing youths appeared. 

"Ah! Now I can make clothes!" Katana rushed over to Sarah's ready room to do who-knows-what, but the rest of the officers were busy trying to take in the information. 

"The Hotel Columbia has been surrounded by policemen since the talks began in an attempt to keep the delegates safe. The Hotel management told us that they have to utmost confidence in Griliton police force, but refused to comment on the progression of the talks, or their opinions. In sports, the--" 

"Close channel. Well, I think we know what we have to do. Ms. Stellar, take us into orbit around Austenous IV." 

***** 

"Computer, replicate 26th century design alpha, size 8 petite." 

The computer beeped in compliance, and out came-- 

"A fish? What the ****? Why the **** did you give me a ******* fish, you ******* machine?" After a few moments of silence, Katana inquired again, but without such colorful word usage. "What the **** is this, computer?" 

"26th century design alpha, size 8 petite." 

"No, computer, this is a fish. Show me 26th century design alpha." 

The design was not for clothing. Not even for a fish. It was the specifications for a banana. On fire. 

Katana banged her head against the wall. 

***** 

Sarah, Keei, Toru, Sig, and Cray were all crowded over Keei's console and trying to design a plan, when a large bundle of bright colors with legs came running out of the ready room and crashed into poor, frightened Cray. 

"Kay everybody, here are our disguises!" Katana began tossing the garments, which landed on people's head due to their surprise. 

"Um, Katana, don't you think something a little less... neon would be more appropriate?" Elenna asked gently. 

"It's what all those people on the news were wearing, and we're all young enough to be in college." 

"Except for you," Sarah remarked quietly. 

"Shut up. I'm young and beautiful, and you're just jealous." 

"Whatever, obasan*," Keei said 

"Just put it on! Boys, in the ready room, and don't come out till we say. Or else." 

A few minutes later, after everyone had changed, Katana looked very smug. "You all look great." She turned in Sarah and Keei's direction. "Just like I said you would. Now, we have a future to save!" 

_*obasan - Japanese - aunt or middle aged lady_

***** 

Keei looked at her neon outfit and winced. "I don't think I'll be able to hear my commbadge these clothes are so loud." She wasn't the only one to feel this way she was sure, but no one else seemed to be saying anything. 

"I dun WANNA be a hippy." She muttered darkly under her breath. 

***** 

"Um, Thanks for the disguise, Tana." 

After pulling on her horrendously gaudy outfit, supplied by the _Empire_ Unusual Clothing Expert, Tana, Aerial shuffled back to her seat. She had a slight problem sitting back down since her outfit included a skirt-like object over the pants. It was three metal rings covered with a translucent red plastic - a modern hoop skirt that made it impossible to sit normally. She sighed and, balancing carefully knelt on her swivel chair. Trying her best to ignore her discomfort, she focused instead on her map. Glancing back and forth, she finally found the star cluster she was looking for. Pulling back on the thingadoomahickey and hitting the doodad, Aerial called out. 

"We're here. Yo, Captain?" Receiving no reaction, Aerial changed her tone of voice. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be arriving momentarily. Please return to your seats and buckle your seatbelts in preparation for landing. Thank you for Flying Starfleet Air and enjoy your time in Austenous IV." 

Surprisingly enough, the crew stopped what they were doing and followed her instructions. 

When the ship slowed to a crawl, Aerial turned over her shoulder. "Katana or Sarah, any pointers before we go undercover?" 

The women looked at each other, then Tana answered, "Nah, we're just gonna wing it." 

"Okey dokey. Where do you want to start?" 

There was silence for a moment or two, then Elenna threw out her suggestion, "We're dressed as, um, college students, right? So we need to go to a campus where we'd blend in." 

"Or a circus." Toru cringed. Tana shot him a dirty look that screamed "shut up!" 

"The riots! In the streets! We should go there!" Keei bounced. 

Sarah who had remained quiet until now said, "The Hotel Columbia, Ms. Stellar." 

"Yes, Ma'am." 


	2. Chapter 2

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 2~_

It wasn't hard to find the Hotel Columbia due to the fact that it seemed to be the only building taller than two stories in the capitol city of Griliton. They fit in perfectly with the disgruntled crowd outside of the Hotel. Unfortunately, this meant there was going to be no easy way for them to sneak into the hotel itself.

"Okay, disguise master, what have you got up your sleeve that can get us actually inside?" Sarah said very quietly to Katana.

"Well, what's your plan?"

"We obviously have to get inside and look like we belong there. Once we're inside we can find the talks and make sure whatever's supposed to happen does happen."

"Can we try to pass ourselves off as guests?"

"We could, but I think that would limit our access. I think we should go for something a little bit more... sneaky."

***** 

Keei groaned when Katana appeared with more clothes in her hands. "Aren't these monstrosities enough torture?"

"One - You look good, and you know it. Two - These are different disguises. Better ones." Katana laid the clothes out as best she could on the old table they had found in the alley where they were hiding. "So, I asked the computer to match us all with jobs typically found in a hotel. I told it our skills, but I did NOT mess with it to my own ends. So don't even start to accuse me. I put in our sizes, and it popped out disguises."

Sarah picked up the first garment, a waiter's outfit. "Medium shirt, 28 X 30 pants."

"That would be me," Toru said as he stepped forward to collect his new clothes. He seemed relieved that he wasn't assigned some crazy job.

Like the next one. This one was a red one-piece bathing suit with shorts to go over it. It came complete with a towel, goggles, and a shiny whistle. "Size 8. The shorts say they're petite."

"Oo! Me! I get a shiny whistle!" Keei literally bounced over and caressed her whistle.

"Yes, Keei dear, you get a shiny whistle," Sarah said as she piled the other things in Keei's arms and pushed her away. The next disguise was A lovely red suit with a pill box hat. A bellboy. "Medium shirt, 30 x 34 pants."

"Me," said Sig. He didn't seem particularly pleased or displeased with his assignment.

"You're going to be the hunkiest bellhop ever!" Keei squealed as he approached where she was standing in the back.

Keei groaned when Katana appeared with more clothes in her hands. "Aren't these monstrosities enough torture?" 

"One - You look good, and you know it. Two - These are different disguises. Better ones." Katana laid the clothes out as best she could on the old table they had found in the alley where they were hiding. "So, I asked the computer to match us all with jobs typically found in a hotel. I told it our skills, but I did NOT mess with it to my own ends. So don't even start to accuse me. I put in our sizes, and it popped out disguises."

Sarah picked up the first garment, a waiter's outfit. "Medium shirt, 28 X 30 pants."

"That would be me," Toru said as he stepped forward to collect his new clothes. He seemed relieved that he wasn't assigned some crazy job.

Like the next one. This one was a red one-piece bathing suit with shorts to go over it. It came complete with a towel, goggles, and a shiny whistle. "Size 8. The shorts say they're petite."

"Oo! Me! I get a shiny whistle!" Keei literally bounced over and caressed her whistle.

"Yes, Keei dear, you get a shiny whistle," Sarah said as she piled the other things in Keei's arms and pushed her away. The next disguise was A lovely red suit with a pill box hat. A bellboy. "Medium shirt, 30 x 34 pants."

"Me," said Sig. He didn't seem particularly pleased or displeased with his assignment.

"You're going to be the hunkiest bellhop ever!" Keei squealed as he approached where she was standing in the back.

The next outfit was a skirt suit in navy, the uniform of a concierge. "6?" Sarah said simply.

"Me." Aerial said as she came forward. "I get to watch the lobby, right?" Sarah nodded. "Cool."

There was a suit in black with sunglasses, and it looked very intimidating, like something a bodyguard would wear. "I suppose this must be yours, Cray, since you're the last man left. Sure you can handle it?" 

"I think I can do security, ma'am," Cray said very seriously.

Katana nudged him. "That was a joke. You just missed it because Sarah's bad at jokes. I think it comes with the ears." Cray smiled in understanding. At first he had thought the Captain was doubting his abilities.

"I think that's enough out of you, Doctor," Sarah said as she pushed McCoy back to the end of the table. "Size 4 tall?" she asked as she held up a burgundy suit. It was similar to Aerial's, but not quite. A manager.

"I think that's me," Elenna said quietly. Once she had taken her disguise, Sarah surveyed the remaining outfits.

"A maid and a bartender. Hmm, I wonder which is which," Sarah said with just the slightest bit of sarcasm. 

"Oh, c'mon, the computer made a good call. You can sneak in and eavesdrop on all those sneaky Romulans. And you know, people will tell their bartend things they'd never tell their doctor." 

"You're starting to sound a lot like a doctor, bartender," Sarah said simply. "Everyone, please find a place to change and slowly assimilate yourself into the hotel. If anyone becomes suspicious, tell them you were just hired. Which is true. And please come up with a believable back story. Now, let's go." As they left the alleyway, their long shadows slowly disappeared as they walked down the golden streets in the twilight. 

*****

Since it was getting late, Katana decided the first order of business was to get to her bar and make the other bartender... disappear. She sauntered into "The Stardust Lounge."

"What can I get you?" asked the current man behind the bar.

"JD, straight up."

"Coming right up." He turned around, and Katana took this opportunity to knock him unconscious. 

"Oo, K.O. Please insert two more coins." She rounded the bar. The bottle of whiskey was unharmed, but the glass in his hand had spilled all over the floor. "You bad man, wasting alcohol like that. I think you deserve a special punishment." 

*****

When the ex-bartender came to, he was very confused. "Wha?" 

"You fainted. I don't think you should be tending bars anymore, sir."

"What? Why?"

"I'm afraid you have acute mylosis sychnosia."

"What is that?"

"It's something bartenders generally suffer from. Your liver will shut down soon, followed by your spleen. The first outward symptom is this green rash you have." The man stood and consulted the mirror plated back of the bar with horror. "You should probably go home, and put your affairs in order." 

"But-- how do you know this?"

"I'm a doctor."

The man rushed out of the hotel, bumping into a few people on his way out.

Katana whistled as she pocketed her green marker. She disappeared behind the bar, only to reappear in her bartender's get up. "Like taking alcohol from a baby."

***** 

It got very busy later that night. Katana was almost surprised since, as far as she could tell, it was a Thursday night. As 10 o'clock rolled around, however, she hadn't seen any Federation types nor any shifty Romulans. She was beginning to get a bit discouraged. They couldn't negotiate this late into the night, could they?

Perhaps they could, because at that moment in walked a set of pointy ears. Bingo. The young woman approached the bar and sat down. The funny thing, though, was that she was in Federation uniform, a Lieutenant. Maybe Katana had gotten a Vulcan, which was bad news for her, because Vulcans usually didn't spill much. She knew she was wrong, however, when she heard the order from the slumped form.

"Double shot of the strongest stuff you've got, straight."

"Gotcha." Katana pulled out what she had swiped from Sarah's room, something she doubted her dear friend had noticed. It was some green Romulan drink which, once Katana had tried it, she had never had again. She was of the opinion that this might me the only drink in the galaxy that could make even her drunk. Maybe.

The woman grunted thanks and knocked it back without even looking at it. She coughed as she slammed the glass back on the table. "What, are you trying to kill me? Never give someone a double shot of Cithm'nea!"

Katana shrugged. "You asked for my strongest stuff."

"But I wasn't expecting you to have this! It's illegal in parts of the Empire itself!"

"Hey, keep it down, would ya? I promise not to give you anymore shots o' death."

The woman definitely had a faint Romulan accent (Katana was familiar with them). Double bingo.

"So, why don't you tell me a little about yourself? Like, how a Romulan gets into Starfleet?"

The woman narrowed her eyes. _Curse it all_, Katana thought. _I forgot how suspicious they all are._ In an attempt at a save, Katana stuck out her hand. "I'm Katana, at your service." 

"I'm Ocala'Dhael," she said slowly. As she took Katana's hand, the good Doctor inwardly grinned. Triple bingo.

*****

Ocala'Dhael looked up from behind her shot glass at the bartender as she took her hand. She was slightly surprised the bartender - what was her name? - Oh, right, Katana, was even able to get a hold of Cithm'nea. She had it once, during her half-sisters wedding on Romulus. Sure, it was illegal, but if you were up high enough in the government, anything could be smoothed over. Dropping Katana's hand, she clutched the shot glass again. Yet another long day of negotiations. Her father, Tremok, sat there the entire time, dressed up in his Senator's robes, eyeing her along with her Captain, Draconis Tempest, of the USS _Deity_. And the Captain had been all too worried about how this would turn out. Sure, she may be half Romulan – hell, she grew up with them – but she really didn't know how they thought, how that perverted mind ticked, even if she shared it. Downing her shot in one swift motion, she noticed Katana watching her, cleaning a glass with a rag at the same time. 

"So, you never answered my question. How did you end up in Starfleet?" Katana seemed to be bouncing on her heels. Way too joyful. Ocala'Dhael never thought she would be able to get this woman to shut up.

"Get me another drink, and then you may get your answer." Katana reached behind the long counter, pulled up a larger glass, and filled it with a purplish liquid that seemed to match the violet of Ocala'Dhael's eyes. She set it down in front of her with a thud. Ocala'Dhael looked up at Katana, and then back at the drink. On any other day, she wouldn't have touched that much alcohol, but these negotiations were really starting to eat at her. Finally, she gave into temptation and pulled the glass forward, sipping the liquid. It seemed to have a trace of Romulan Ale in it, and she wouldn't have put it past this bartender, coming up with Cithm'nea and all. Regardless, Ocala'Dhael drank anyways, simply glad to be free of the negotiation rooms and rations: Romulan water, which is drained of minerals, and selk, a very crusty bread. Ocala'Dhael took a long drink out of the glass and set it down. Definitely had some Romulan Ale. It was already starting to give her that buzz right behind her pointed ears.

"So, you wanna know how I ended up in Starfleet." Katana nodded, once, twice, three times. "It's not hard. You apply, you get accepted. End of story." Ocala'Dhael shrugged. She would rather not reveal her past to this person. Sure, she looked human, but who knew? Plenty of Romulan officials could have dispatched her to find out who that Romulan was. And of the learned the truth, that she was the bastard child of one of their top-ranking officials, they would be able to knock him down. And the fact that she was half-human, and serving in Starfleet, well, that was icing on the cake. Not that she cared for her father, but she didn't feel like being the object of hatred on Romulus.

"Yeah, well, I heard that's how it works, but how did you end up on Earth? Romulans don't typically migrate there, and they don't marry humans, and they don't join Starfleet just because -" Katana kept going on and on.

"Shut up! OK, if I tell you, would you just, leave me alone? Forever?" Katana nodded, although it wasn't very convincing.

"Ever heard of the USS _Destiny_? It was taken by Romulans just under 30 years ago. My mother, Celina, was a commander on the ship, and she was taken as a prisoner. Eventually, she became impregnated, and got returned to Earth. I was born." Katana had placed another drink out on the table. This really wasn't good for her, but her judgment was already gone.

"So you never lived on Romulus, or knew your dad?" Katana leaned in, ready to hear what was next, just to be sure she had the right person. And normally, Ocala'Dhael wouldn't have shared any information with her, but that alcohol…

"Nah, I did live on Romulus, until I was 21 in fact. Served a year on a ship. Went to school there and everything. Majored in Computer Programming and was on my way to the top. But, I didn't like it. Decided to leave. Went to Earth, lived with Celina, graduated from the Academy, and got stuck back where I started…" Her speech was becoming slightly slurred, and she was practically laying her head on the counter. A second later, she slumped over against the table top, and her com badge went off.

*****

Keei slipped through the backdoor and snuck through the laundry rooms to the pool. the place was deserted. She grinned and plopped into the lifeguard's chair, snickering quietly to herself. It looked like she'd got the easy job. Now. . . If only she had a book . . .

These thoughts scattered as The HOTTEST guy she had seen, (Since meeting David Bowie on the holodeck) stalked in. He dived in, not noticing her, and apparently not caring he'd dived into the SHALLOW end of the pool. She coughed as he came up and the small noise drew his attention up to her.

The Science officer waved cheerily, braid hanging over her shoulder.

"You _are_ old enough to know you're not supposed to dive there yes?" The man growled and nodded, obviously embarrassed.

Keei grinned. This was going to be Fuuuunn.

*****

Toru had rarely ever visited restaurants in civilian life, and never once had he gone anywhere but a bar in the military. So this was a bit of a first time on both ends.

He strolled over to a pair of Romulan women, both in government dress, one with a blue tunic and the other with red. From the looks on their faces and their voice tones it was obvious they were involved in a very heated argument. He bowed his head slightly and placed his hands behind his back.

"Erm, good evening-"

"Dammit, I SAW YOU go INTO THE ROOM with HIM!" the blue shirted woman shouted.

"ABSOLUTE TRIPE! Wait- YOU FOLLOWED ME?" 

"Ahem, good evening-"

"STAY OUT OF THIS-" the red shirted woman glared at Toru.

"YES, WHO ARE YOU ANYWAY?"

"Erm, your... waiter?" Toru bit his lip, and tried very hard to recall the bit of Romulan he had learned from Sarah when she talked with the refugees. "I'm very sorry," he said in their native tongue.

"Oh? You speak our tongue?" one responded back.

"Erm, not that much," Toru switched back to basic. "A childhood friend of mine was Romulan."

"Oh?"

"Yes, but... Can I trouble you two ladies for your drink-" Then Toru stopped. Blue shirted one was fingering something.  
A flash of light-  
A silver darting shape.  
A twist of the wrist, a flick, a grab.

Toru wrested it from her grip, and hook kicked her so that she slumped into the seat, unconscious. In her hand was a long, serrated dagger. Transparent Blade. Glass? No. Some sort of alloy though. He examined it closely.

A beautiful curving shape. Blue inlay.  
But definitely not Romulan.  
Maybe, maybe Terran. But he doubted it.  
In fact, it was not like any blade he had ever seen. Not any system he had visited.

Why would a Romulan carry such a blade...?

It was just at this moment he noticed Red was staring at him intensely.

"I suppose she tried to take revenge for my dating her _boyfriend_."

"Oh?" Toru quietly slipped the dagger in his pocket.

"Yes, though he said nothing about her. I just hooked up with him the other week, when the delegation arrived."

Something in Toru's mind clicked. He resisted the urge to grin. "Was this woman with the Romulan delegation?"

Red frowned, "You know, now I come to think of it... I don't recall seeing her."

Toru nodded. "I'll tell the management. In the meantime may I recommend to you an alcoholic beverage of some type?"

Red smiled, "that would be most appreciated."

Toru nodded another bow and went back to Tana.

*****

*fweep* . . . *fweep* . . . *Fweeep*

"Will you stop that?" *fweep*

"Will you PLEASE stop that." *fweep*

"Will you please STOP THAT!" *fweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep* 

Keei chuckled maliciously as the man growled. His red hair was soaked, making it look crimson instead of flame. But that was unimportant! Her shiny whistle was a weapon, and with it she would RULE THE WORLD! But first the man treading water in front of her was in need of more annoying.

*fwee-* the noise was cut off as water hit her face. She snarled at him doing her best to imitate "Tana's glare of Doom™."

"You, are SO going down."

*****

Toru tapped Tana on the back as she poured a tired looking Romulan woman some unrecognizable drink.

"Huh?" She spun around on her high heels.

He tossed the dagger to her lightly. She caught it spinning by the handle.

"I do not recognize the make of this dagger. Any ideas?"

Tana examined the blade of the dagger carefully. "It's not Terran, though I'd be tempted to say... I don't know. I've never seen anything like it. Where did you get it?"

"Two Romulan ladies were having a bit of a ... catfight. Luckily the one with the trigger happy complex is now unconscious."

Tana raised an eyebrow, "Wasn't this supposed to be undercover?" 

"What? I was just supposed to stand by and let the woman die!"

"You may have interfered with the past and caused even more problems!" Tana crossed her arms, "What if that woman was supposed to die?"

"The woman who attacked her wasn't with the Romulan delegation, though she was wearing their dress. And her victim couldn't identify her." 

"So?"

"What if she was what we were looking for?"

"And if she wasn't? Any Romulan woman could have simply replicated the clothing and the dagger." 

"Tana, I KNOW that dagger didn't come from any system near here. I know very few things for certain, but I KNOW this." 

"Toru..."

Toru sighed. "I suppose I've screwed up then?" He looked up at Tana.

"That's what you get for being a good samaritan."

"What should I do?"

"Not jump to conclusions. Why not research who the woman was?"

Toru nodded, "I'll get on it."

*****

Peering out from the leaves of a potted plant, Aerial observed the concierge desk for a few minutes. There was a young lady standing behind the counter waiting on a long string of customers. The way she kept looking at her watch convinced Aerial that she was waiting anxiously for something – probably the end of her shift. As Aerial knelt up to see more of the desk's top, her view was suddenly obstructed by a large set of matched luggage. Try as she could, she couldn't see over the suitcases without leaving the cover of her potted tree. Giving up, she decided instead to watch the owners of the baggage.

The man who'd set down the bags was small of stature with beady eyes. He appeared to be catering to a middle-aged woman, decked out from head to toe in what Aerial imagined were the newest styles. Her four-inch heels made her seem to tower over her companion, and her long thick overcoat practically doubled her already pudgy size. Her hairstyle was indescribable; suffice to say Aerial assumed she'd used a blender to create it. Glancing back to the suitcases, Aerial noticed the owner identification tag for the first time. The woman's name was "P'laxadi Arelliaka Ger'lanki", unpronounceable to Aerial, at least, and telling her that she couldn't use her real name here. She pulled a marker out of her pocket (one from the infamous Helm Craft Box) and copied in her neatest handwriting the woman's middle name onto her nametag. Phonetically pronouncing it, she decided the name would be close enough to her own that she could remember to answer to it. The man, who P'laxadi kept calling "Slpeeetak", walked straight to Aerial's tree to gather the luggage again. Aerial, terrified of getting caught, scurried quickly away. She looked for a dark corner to change in, but the entire lobby was brightly lit and she couldn't take her chances behind another tree. Praying against a surveillance system, she snuck over to the elevators. Fortunately, the area seemed deserted – so she pressed the button for an up elevator. When one arrived, she waited for twenty people with small children to amble off, then hurried on and shut the doors. She'd finished changing into the skirt (and stupid nylons) when the elevator slowed to a stop on the fifteenth floor. Here a couple and their small kid got on the same elevator – they had the little boy press the button for two floors up – and they quickly explained that they were picking up friends to head down to the pool. The parents were obviously having lots of fun on this trip – they pressed into a corner, kissing passionately. Aerial focused her attention on the child in an effort to avoid blushing. He walked over to her and looked up with curiosity, then shrugged and walked back over to the button panel and pressed the next six buttons. Aerial wanted to strangle him, or at least berate his parents for their inattention to him, but before she lost her temper, the elevator stopped again and they got off. Aggravated, she waited until floor twenty before she started changing again – expecting a few floors in between there and the next stop. She pulled off the neon top she'd been wearing and had just pulled on the second sleeve of the blouse when the doors opened again. Frantic, she looked up to find two young men and any attempt to keep from blushing was gone. The first young man averted his eyes, "Sorry!" while his buddy leered from behind him. Aerial, thinking quickly, spun to face the back, still glowing crimson.

"We'll wait for the next elevator." The first boy said, but the second had already pushed him into the car.

"It's--it's okay. My fault!" she stammered over her shoulder, buttoning her blouse as fast as she possibly could.

The first boy, starring at the doors, said "Not a problem. I don't mean to be rude, or anything and you don't have to answer, but why-"

"Were you stripping in the elevator?" His companion picked up the query, obviously eager to find out.

Even though she thought it was impossible, Aerial blushed even more at the stranger's accusation. "Oh, I-uh-I…I spilled something on my top and had to change it before I got to work."

"Ah!" the first boy said with a smile, while the second said "Oh!" with a twinge of disappointment. At the next floor, the elevator stopped to let a little old lady on, and Aerial slipped out. As the doors closed, the ruder of the two men yelled out "Nice Bra!" causing the little old lady to turn in surprise to both Aerial and the man. His buddy, the more polite one, looked up apologetically to Aerial, then to the old lady. Aerial stepped to the side of the elevator and sat down for a minute. Once she'd recovered from her mortification she picked herself up, straightened her uniform and proceeded to find the staircase. 

Aerial was very self-conscious as she entered the lobby from the hotel's back door. She had the suit coat over her arm and a pleasant, though nervous, smile plastered on her face. She walked up to the concierge desk and slid behind it. The one young lady was still there, a stressed expression on her face and when she noticed Aerial, she sighed, "Please return to the other side of the counter and wait in line, before--" That was when she noticed Aerial's uniform matched her own.

"Are you…?"

"I've just been transferred here from headquarters, part of a new expansion plan. My name's Arelliaka."

"I haven't heard anything about an expansion plan…but I'll take all the help I can get."

*****

Katana was a little surprised, and more than a little impressed, considering she'd been giving Ocala'Dhael some of the strongest stuff (really, as per _her_ request) for a good hour, and she wasn't completely unconscious yet.

"You know what?" Ocala mumbled over her fourth glass of the weird colored stuff. Tana quirked an eyebrow.

"What?" She replied, thinking vaguely that the last mixer had really capped it. Ocala leaned a little more forward, beckoning Katana closer, as she wobbled slightly on her stool.

"I wanna 'nother shot o' that-" She began, and promptly passed out. Katana looked skyward, and then as she quickly scrawled a sign that read, 'be back later', she muttered,

"Lord, protect me from the innocents, the loan sharks, and those who can't handle their liquor." 

As Katana carried Ocala into the elevator, having already filched her room key, she sighed, and leaned against the wall. She suddenly became aware of the presence of a few more people in the elevator. She glared at the two guys.

"What?" she finally asked irritatedly, shortly before she got off on Ocala's floor. She shook her head and left the elevator.

The two men looked at each other, and one of them grinned.

"First that chick stripping in here, and now lesbians! I love this hotel!" 

Katana, utilizing vast amounts of luck and talent, managed to continue to carry Ocala and open the door to her room. As she stepped in, she wasn't exactly sure if the room was exactly what she'd expected of Ocala. It seemed to keep in style with the decor of the hotel- vaguely out of the American Terran 1950's. However, there were clothes strewn about the room, as if she couldn't decide what she was going to wear in the morning, and in the evening didn't care where they landed.

And was that a pair of boxers? Katana shook her head. Surely they were hers... for sleeping in or something. So she hoped. She'd just met Ocala, and didn't want to know if she was bumping uglies with someone, anyone, really. Glancing around the room after lying Ocala carefully on the bed, she noted a few things of interest, including a bunch of documents on the dresser, which when looked through were, unfortunately enough, rather mundane, and what was perhaps the only neat area in the room, a box filled with ornate looking daggers of probably Romulan origin. Hrm.

Katana heard a knock on the door.

"Ocala? Are you in there?" Katana froze. She paused, and prayed to all higher deities that whatever man (perhaps the owner of those boxers?) stayed out there, and not in here.

"Ocala?" He called again, then Katana heard a distinct sigh, and footsteps leading away from the door, and she then quietly let out her own held breath.

"Woman of shame." Katana mumbled almost fondly in Ocala's direction, then sighed. She wasn't finding anything to expedite their search for well... fixability in time, and fun as being a bartender was, she was a little twitchy for some reason she couldn't fathom.

On the hotel stationery she wrote a quick note to Ocala, explaining she'd passed out, and Katana had taken her back up to her room, and after a quick glance out the door, she dashed out of the room, leaving the keys on the dresser. With an amused spring in her step, and a whistle on the air, she rode the elevator back down to her world of mixers, alcohol and swizzle sticks.

*****

Keei grinned in her Cheshire way and put on her goggles. The wave caught him smack in the chest as she jumped in bending her knees to absorb the shock then diving. Only to come up behind him.

"WEDGIE!" the man yelped in a very undignified manner and spun around. Keei smirked. 

"You...you...Hellcat!" The shorter human bowed, bouncing on her toes slightly. he growled and splashed at her, she dodged expertly.

"Ha! You call that a splash?" A short burst of water hit him directly in the face. He spluttered and wiped his face only to be met by another compact amount of water. 

"We Midoris are practically BORN in water!" he managed to get the water out of his eyes only to be met with empty pool. He glanced from side to side then screamed in a macho manner as a pair of hands yanked his swim trunks down to his knees from behind. 

Scrambling to put them back on he didn't notice Keei get out of the pool, towel herself off a bit and climb back into her chair. She sat serenely as he muttered curses at her, the only evidence that she'd done anything at all were her wet swimsuit and shorts. 

*fweep*

"grrrrr..." 

*fweep*


	3. Chapter 3

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 3~_

Ocala'Dhael awoke face down on the hotel room bed, face buried in the pillow, and a knock at the door. Hadn't she been in the bar? She certainly reeked of liquor. She flipped over on the bed, feeling the throbbing between her ears. Hangover. Great. 

"Ocala? Are you in there?" The knocking continued, making her head hurt more.

"I'm coming…" Ocala rolled off the bed, half standing, half falling to the floor. She struggled to reach the door, and pressed the button to let the visitor in. 

Captain Draconis Tempest of the USS _Deity_ stood in the doorway, calm expression on his face. His tranquility had saved their butt in battle more than once. The six foot Trill wore a green tunic and black plants on his slim figure. His green eyes that matched his tunic perfectly gave her the once over, lingering perhaps a little too long. Pulling his eyes to her face, he took her hands and led her toward the clothing cluttered couch.

"Are you OK? I came earlier and no one answered. I've been knocking at the door for five minutes before you came! What's wrong? Is it me? You rushed so quickly from the negotiations I just didn't know…" His tranquility slowly melted to fear.

"I went down to the bar and…well…got drunk." Ocala hid her reddening face. She knew he would never forget this.

"Ocala, you know what alcohol does to you…" He tried to appear serious, but a smile played on his lips. And this, coming from the man who could down bloodwine flagon after flagon. He put Klingons to shame. After all of their dinners together, she never knew how he managed to hold it in so well without becoming the slightest bit tipsy.

"I know…I just was so mad today. Those damn Romulans!" In spite of herself, she was shocked at what she said; her language wasn't normally so…colorful. She was so calm and collected that people sometimes thought she was Vulcan, a notion she wasn't too quick to expel.

Tempest's face went back to its mask of neutrality. "I know how much you dislike Romulans, but you are crucial to this mission, otherwise I would have left you on the _Deity_. But you know how Romulans work, and not many people know that." He leaned back, putting his arm around her. Ocala laid her head on his shoulder, surrendering. Her head hurt so much. "But your negotiating skills aren't that bad. They're almost -" That smile pulled at him again. "– as good as your fathers." Ocala's head shot up. Her eyes seemed to bore into him in a way that said, "Don't talk about him." Tempest's smile was wiped from his face when he started again. "You know, being the half daughter of the Romulan Senator Tremok is an advantage. And he controls the majority that resents us on the diplomatic board. The fact that you're part human could really help. Not that I would exploit you – " He looked at Ocala'Dhael with tenderness. " – But if it comes out, it's out. We might as well use it to out advantage. If that happened, no doubt that Tremok's side will fall, and the part that wants this treaty will become the majority." Was that a tear in Ocala's eye? She had never cried. This was so…un-Ocala, un-Romulan, and yet so human. Tempest was unsure about this person lying on his shoulder. She didn't seem right, but he couldn't pin down the problem.

"Can I stay here tonight?"

The question caught Ocala'Dhael off guard, even though it shouldn't have, considering he had stayed the night before,

"No…my head hurts..." And with that, she seemed to fall asleep.

Tempest carried her to her bed, tucking her in with her uniform still on. He then picked up some of the clothes, trying to tidy the place. He didn't want her to be so shocked when she woke up. Laying the diplomatic robes over a chair, he spotted his boxers on the floor and stuffed them in his pocket. He had wondered where they had gone. Glancing at the PADDs and the box on the dresser, he went over and collected all the PADDs into a single stack before look inside the box.

Ocala'Dhael loved her daggers more than anything. The only thing she collected, it was one of the two parts of her Romulan heritage that she seemed to embrace; the other was religion. The daggers were placed in the plush velvet with the tip of the blades cushioned in between more velvet so as not to damage them. They depicted great scenes of Romulan mythology: The quest for a home world, the twin brothers founding Romulus and Remus, the first great civil war, the Birth ceremony given to every Romulan, the Spirit ceremony where a bird was chosen to watch over the new Romulan – Ocala'Dhael literally meant fire bird in Romulan and was her own bird - and the splinter group leaving the planet to find a world that was much more habitable. Today, they had evolved into the Mintakins, a mix of Romulan and Vulcan, not much unlike Ocala herself. This last blade was the longest, the artisanship the most intricate, and it was given the place of honor in the middle position, slightly elevated. Closing the box with regret, for Tempest loved to examine the history of other cultures, he turned to leave, looking one last time at the figure that rested in the bed before letting the door shut behind him.

*****

Keei watched the red head stalk out and shook her head. Some people were sooo tetchy! She sighed wistfully. And he HAD been cute to.

Shrugging she turned to survey her surroundings once again. Exercise machines in one corner. Hot tub in the other, and pool in the middle. Nothing special, but all hers! 

"Mwe-he-he-he-he-he-he." The chuckle was evil and power mad. the science officer cut herself short with a small cough and looked at the PADD holder next to her chair. With nothing else to do she took them out and skimmed their titles.

"'In space no one can hear you scream'. Yeesh that's _old_. Hmm...'It came from PYX752' Nah. Already read it. OOH!" She dropped the others back in the container clutching her find. 

"Frozen Kisses! OHMIGOD! I can't believe it! It's stayed in print _this_ long! Yay! Now I _finally_ have it in my collection!" She squealed and settled down to read.

*****

After a quick check of the database by Aerial, Sarah employed her super-stealth to assign herself to the floor with the diplomats. Score, she told herself. Now it's time to spy. You like to spy, right? As she thought on this, she entered the elevator with her little pushcart of cleaning supplies. She hated getting on an elevator with anyone else around or people getting into the elevator while she was in it. She didn't know why, but when the elevator stopped on the lobby floor (she had come from the basement), Sarah was not very happy. Of course, that was before she looked at the man and noticed the Starfleet uniform. After being a bit indignant at the changes to the uniform to make it look so... different, she tried to discreetly memorize his face. If she could talk to him when she wasn't the maid...

Of course, then it crossed her mind to wondering why this man was not negotiating somewhere. It was late morning, and the talks typically would have begun by now. Perhaps he was the one they were looking for...

*****

Elenna poked her head into the hotel management area. "I can do this," she mumbled to herself. Her crew was counting on her to lie and to be deceptive so that the past could be restored and so that the future as she knew it would exist.

In the room, Elenna found a middle-aged man in a burgundy suit screaming at another man in navy blue. "What do ya mean that the shipment of clean linens is late? There's at least two hundred delegates here, not to mention the other guests!" screamed the manager.

"I'm sorry Mr.Chitnebers, that's what the cleaning staff told me to tell you," replied the younger man.

"Get the *#$ out, you *&#$#!" screamed the manager as the younger man darted out of the room.

"Excuse me sir; my name is Númora E. Súprimes and I have been told to help the management department as part of the internship for my college." She patiently waited with an outstretched hand for Mr. Chitnebers' response.

"Great! Just what I need, a $#$# college student on top of this insane &##0042 mess this *#$ hotel has dumped on my already chaotic &#*$ workload!" he bellowed.

"Mr. Chintebers, as an extra-circular activity I study peer meditation, conflict resolution, and other such things," she calmly stated.

"Oh really, that just *#$ peachy!" came the heated response.

"You need to calm down, sir." Elenna's natural instinct as a counselor jumped to life at his obvious need of help. "Is there anyone you could call in to temporally fill in for you? It's obvious that you are going through a lot of stress and some time away from work may help you to calm down."

The enraged man glanced at the young lady and through a loosely controlled voice stated, "Miss Súprimes, for all I *&#$ care you can run this god-awful ##0042#$ hotel. I'm leaving." And with that he huffed out of the hotel.

*****

Waking, Ocala'Dhael could still feel a sharp pain behind her ears. Trying to ignore it, she dragged her self into the sonic shower. Getting out, she put on her diplomats robes over her standard issue Starfleet uniform. She hated these robes, so cumbersome. But Starfleet felt the need to look, well, pretty. They were black, lined in gold and the color on your uniform, so Ocala's was a solid gold braid. She tried to do something with her hair, but it just wouldn't stay put. Pressing a hypospray against her neck, she relieved herself of the pain of a hangover. Apparently, Tempest at left it the night before.

Down in the lobby of the hotel, she met Tempest in his red edged robes. He gave her a slight grimace. Everyone hated the uniforms. They were given permission to transport over to the building that negotiations were going on in.

When the transporter shimmer faded, Ocala found herself being looked over by two guards, the same ones that had always been there. As per regulations, they searched them, scanned them, and did all but turn them inside out checking. They were given permission to pass, and they went wordlessly down a hallway, robes billowing behind them. 

"Feeling better?" Tempest asked, twitching his lips. Ocala'Dhael shot him a look.

"Yes."

"Good. We'll need you today. We're going to start the good part, the bartering. We need a good deal on this one Ocala." He stopped right in front of the doors, preventing her from going in. He looked her straight in the eye. "Put aside whatever feelings you have for the Romulans in there, good or bad, and do your duty to Starfleet."

With that, Tempest pushed open the doors and walked down the blue carpet towards the center table.

*****

Keei finished the book and sighed. She'd been on duty _all_ night! Where on Earth was her replacement? Looking around she spotted the red headed man again, this time in red swim trunks, a white tank top and a whistle.

" . . . Crud." She got down from the chair and bowed smiling.

"You come most carefully upon your hour!" To her surprise he grinned, replying,

"'Tis now struck twelve; get thee to bed." The small Science officer shivered slightly as a draft blew in from somewhere.

"For this relief much thanks: 'tis bitter cold. And it's a heckuva lot later then twelve!" They both chuckled at that and he nodded.

"Sorry, Got held up in the elevator, so many drunks heading back to their rooms, took me forever to get down." Keei grinned.

"Well now that you're here, I'm gone!" And she skipped happily to the bar, ignoring the stares she got from the remaining patrons and the few morning drinkers trickling in.

*****

Amid the sea of files, PADDs, and folders, Elenna found herself slowly becoming frustrated with the myriad of problems the hotel created.

"I wonder how Sarah can handle the crew! The hotel staff can be at times the most incompetent beings I've met. They complain, but don't try to resolve their own problems; they always need someone to hold their hand through this process or be given the answer. Don't these people have brains?" 

Elenna paused; why had she just lashed out to the air? The mounting frustration annoyed her to no end.

"When I get back to the ship, I'm going to go to the holodeck," mumbled Elenna. "I could finger paint or make confetti. Yeah! That could probable relieve the stress I'm feeling! A jump into the plastic ball pit could also be fun."

Childhood novelties like finger painting and model building never ceased to bring a glimmer of joy to Elenna.

*****

Keei plopped onto a barstool, braid swinging back and forth.

"Shirley Temple, please!" She hummed happily slowly swiveling around on the stool.

"Keei, you're going to screw it in to the ground if you keep that up." The miniature science officer/life guard grinned.

"Heh heh heh." Tana rolled her eyes.

"You pervert."

*****

Sarah supposed she should become more stealthy after the man in the elevator seemed to notice her interest in him. Wait, had she just given herself a wonderful cover idea? Yes. Yes she had. When he looked over her way she turned and thought as hard as she could about... embarassing things. The man smiled a little. She supposed he was thinking about how much she dug him.

This went on for a few more excruciating eternities--I mean, seconds until the lift came to a stop with a ding. Sarah pushed her cleaning cart out of the elevator and down the hallway briskly. When she turned the corner and waited quietly, she didn't hear footsteps. She had lost him. For now.

Berating herself at her clumsiness, she found her way to the diplomatic suites. She knocked, "Housekeeping." No answer. At this point, she unlocked the room and proceeded inside. This room was just a bedroom. She resigned herself to cleaning it thoroughly. Oh, and spying. That too. It just was going to take some time...

*****

"Now, sir, it really wasn't that bad ..." 

Kinta fumed. "WASN'T THAT BAD, ARIA? WASN'T THAT BAD?" 

"Well, at least you're safe!"

He replaced the bandages along the side of his left leg as he quietly cursed, counted to ten, and replied. "At least until the next drunk throws me out a second story window onto the sidewalk! Aria, honestly, why the hell did you send me to a bar? I asked for a hotel, for God's sake."

The cheerful, dark-haired officer laughed as she bashfully answered, "I'm sorry! I got the addresses to the 'Hotel Commodore' and 'Thar She Blows' mixed up." 

An eyebrow raised. "Why would you have the bar's address anyway? You don't seem like the drinking type."

"Sure I am! I mean, I don't drink often, but I have to have a place to unwind once in awhile, y'know? I'd been meaning to take you there after work sometime. It's a fun place!"

Kinta rolled his eyes. "You have excuses to unwind? Pfft. And that's a stupid idea. You know I'm allergic to alcohol."

"Sorry, sir."

"Another thing," he continued. "That wasn't exactly a bar young ladies would be safe visiting." He raised his left arm which was covered in a cast. "How is it you get out of there alive and a virgin?"

She giggled. "Daddy owns the place. He makes sure nothing happens to me." 

"Right. Anyway. I have to go look for my new crew. You take care of yourself."

Aria saluted. "I'll be with you once my transfer papers go through."

"Good God. Aria, why do you have to follow me around?"

"Someone's gotta take care of you, sir! Heaven knows you take care of everyone else."

He snorted. "Right. Later days."

He signed off and finished replacing the last of his bandages. He picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder, then carried his suitcase with his good hand. He headed to the elevator so that he could check out of the hotel at the downstairs lobby. He had no clue where the _Empire_ was, or where he should've started to look.

As the elevator door opened, there seemed to be a small point of light hovering in the center of the space inside. Kinta leaned forward to investigate. "What the--?"

The light grew and swallowed him up.

*****

"OH SHIT!" He screamed as he landed on his hurt side. Pain shot through his arm and leg as he twitched in the elevator. The elevator was different, though. The one he had been in had blue painted walls and carpeting while this one had a dark maroon.

The elevator doors opened once again and Kinta limped out. He was still in a hotel, very similar to the one he had stayed in just 5 minutes ago. He scanned his surroundings when he spotted through an open room's door ...

"Captain Cosmo? Good God, please tell me it's you...!"

*****

One of things Sarah did _not_ miss from Earth was blinds. Every time she used them, she pulled the string somehow so they never worked. So, she was getting annoyed (for a Vulcan), and Kinta yelling her name behind her did not help.

"I do not know why you are yelling at me, sir, but if you could _calm down_, perhaps I could speak with you." She turned around, and Kinta seemed to shrink under her gaze.

"Um, I'm sorry, must have mistaken you for someone else," he said loudly. Then his eyes darted from side to side, and he entered the room. "Are you really not Captain Cosmo?" he whispered.

Sarah prayed for patience. "I am undercover. How did you get here?"

"I dunno."

"Great." It was at this point that she noticed the bandages running up his side. "What happened to you?"

"I was thrown out a window."

"Did you see a doctor?"

"...Not really."

"Then go down to the bar and make yourself useful."

"But... Bar..."

"I _said_, go to the bar. Now, Mr. Sun."

Kinta sighed but moped himself away. Sarah almost sighed and went back the blinds of doom. Katana could deal with him.

*****

Aerial looked up at the never-ending line of people and swallowed hard. She really had no information to help them with, so she was in for a creative morning – making everything up. She stepped up to the counter and called out, "I can help the next person!"  
A mass of 30 people fought their way into her line, dragging heavy suitcases and battling for places. First person in her line was a young couple, who kept muttering something about a "lousy honeymoon". Aerial finally gathered that they were on their honeymoon and since the hotel and the city were restricted, they couldn't go do anything. She searched really quick for an idea, and all she could find within arms length was the cup of kiddie crayons, so she handed them three and said, "Draw some pictures, it's good for the soul."  
"Huh?" they accepted the crayons, bewildered and she brushed them out of line, "Next please."

*****

Keei swirled her drink around in the glass. She'd been up for a full day, but since she was past the four AM hurdle she could go for another day without sleep. . . as long as she didn't slow down...She set the glass on the bar liquid untouched. 

"On second thought Tana, Can I have a root beer?"

*****

Katana blinked as the man sat down at the bar, mumbling softly in a pitiful tone. His bandage covered appearance reeked of 'bar fight', and yet, no reek of alcohol over him.

"Can I get you a drink?" she asked, as timidly as she would, and the man winced.

"God, no. Unless you have something not made of the demon drink back there," he muttered. Katana blinked, and slid him over a glass of water. He sniffed it delicately, and took it with a light nod of thanks.

"Uh, is there something I can do you for?" she asked, and he sighed.

"Unless you happen to be a surgeon or something, I don't think so," he grumbled. Katana smirked slightly. Keei shuddered from her seat a few stools down, and sighed down at the root beer which had just lost its taste.

"And if I was?" she asked, and he really looked up. He quirked an eyebrow.

"Well, one... Do I know you, and two, help?" he said. She grinned.

"Name's Katana McCoy," she replied. His eyes widened slightly. "C'mon," She said with a grin, "I'll put up the be right back sign, and we'll get you patched up better." She left the sign she'd created as part of her drunken passenger ferry system, and escorted Kinta firmly out of the room.

*****

Keei sighed as Tana left and rested her forehead on the bar. So long, away from home. No E-letters from her parents or little brother. Dammit, they didn't even exist anymore.

"Show me the way to go hoooome. . .I'm tired and I want to go to bed. . ." She took another sip of the root beer.

"No rest for the wicked and the officers." She chugged the last of the carbonated drink and trudged out to see what was happening around the hotel. She passed a young married couple coloring happily together in the lobby, and had to punch a pervert who tried to pull down her shorts. His friend shook his head sadly.

"Stupid, man."

"It was _worth_ it!"

She passed the room where the negotiations were going on and stopped for awhile just to admire some of the invective being used, what she could hear of it anyway. Then she nodded to the guards and moved on. It took all her will power to act like she didn't know Sarah when she saw her in the hallway, exchanging polite nods and raising a rather eloquent eyebrow.

"I need chocolate." With that as incentive she was off to find a vending machine.

*****

Elenna dignifiedly walked to the bar. One negative aspect of her job as a "manger" was that she had to make monthly rounds to check up on the quality of the hotel's services. According to the schedule left by Mr. Chitnebers, the bar was due for a check up.

Upon arriving, Elenna noticed the sign the Katana had left. "Great! I'll come back later. Maybe the bartender will be back," said Elenna out loud. Inwardly, she was quite happy with Katana for taking care of the drunken patrons. Somehow she could write this up in her "report" about the reliability and the service of the hotel.


	4. Chapter 4

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 4~_

Siegfried stood ready at the door, his hands folded behind his back. He smiled, watching Elenna run towards the bar and Keei, still dressed in her lifeguard outfit, stroll happily by with a rather large chocolate bar in tow. He glanced down at his own clothing and thought, "Well, at least the uniform's not too bad." He then added with a smirk, "And guests tip well."

So far, nothing notable had happened while Sig was undercover… well, aside from the usual. After porting their luggage, many wealthy looking ladies had made several offers to the bellhop to share a drink at the bar, but Sig had politely refused each time. None of them looked like they knew anything about the negotiations anyway. 

Until now.

A beautiful human woman was heading straight towards Siegfried. She was obviously not paying attention to where she was walking, for she and a man dressed in Federation robes were talking quietly with their heads close together. Despite her trying to be inconspicuous, nothing could hide the fact that she was drop-dead gorgeous.

"It's always some beautiful woman… couldn't I have found some old diplomat to tail instead?" Sig cursed the heavens above for dealing him yet the same hand again. "You've got some sense of humor up there," he mumbled, moving purposefully towards the two guests.

Sig cleared his throat, catching the guests' attention and halting their conversation. Putting on a cheery, toothy smile, he announced, "Welcome to the Hotel Columbia. Would you like me to take your bags?" He gestured towards the large bag the woman was rolling behind her and a small suitcase her companion was carrying.

"No," the man responded curtly, his expression annoyed. Siegfried narrowed his eyes slightly, noting that the man was grasping the handle quite tightly. _Something important in there…_

"Ah, very well, sir," Sig replied. "Then may I direct you and your wife to the front desk?" _At least they're married, so I don't have to play **that** card again_.

The woman began giggling lightly and the man turned rather red.

"Um, have I said something to offend you?" Sig wondered aloud.

"No," the man said again. "It's just that…"

"I'm not his wife," the woman explained, stifling her laughter. "This is my brother."

"Oh." Siegfried felt dumbfounded for a second. _So she is single… Abso-bloody-lutely wonderful._

The man shot Sig a slightly contemptuous, bemused look. _Undercover! Be undercover! _the bellhop berated himself.

"My apologies for the mistake, sir. I will step out of your way now." 

"You'd better…" the man growled. He turned to his sister, "Come, Isabella."

"Actually, Nicholas, I'm quite tired of pulling this enormous bag around. Perhaps he," she glanced at Siegfried, "could be helpful."

"Do whatever you like," he responded gruffly. "I'm going to drop off my things then head for the bar." The man stalked off moodily. 

Siegfried pushed the handle down on the woman's bag and hefted its considerable weight with one hand. She turned to him and said, "Thank you for helping me. Nicholas can be so… hostile sometimes."

With an inaudible grunt, Sig responded, "Happy to oblige, Miss…?"

"Reinhart." _Isabella Reinhart…_ Sig thought. "You must be new," she added. "My family comes to the Columbia quite often."

"Ah, so you have regular private suites reserved for each of you already, I presume?"

She smiled, clearly enjoying this friendly banter much more than her earlier conversation with her brother. "Yes. Usually the staff doesn't even bother to tend to us, because they know that Nicholas likes to keep to himself…"

_Oops._

"Though this," she turned to Siegfried, "is quite a pleasant surprise. I'm happy to have made your acquaintance, Mr…?" 

"Guillaume de Saint-Exupery," Sig lied smoothly, hoping that a French sounding name like the woman's would help her warm up more quickly to him. He was getting into the rhythm of things, hiding his expressions more quickly and putting up false ones more easily. "But most people call me Guy."

*****

"I'm sorry sir, but for the third time, I can _not_ get you six tickets to _Cheese on_ _Ice_ for 7:30 tonight."

"But I need those tickets! And _you're_ the concierge. It's your job to get those tickets for me."

"Sir, you're requesting tickets for 7:30 tonight, and I've called the ticket office twice. They are sold out for the next three nights!"

"Then what am I supposed to do? I need those tickets to _Cheese on Ice_. Call the box office again!"

Aerial was losing her cool, so she turned to her co-worker, "Kila – please explain to this fine gentleman," she gestured to the man, "that there is no possible way I can get him tickets for _Cheese on Ice_ tonight."

Kila sighed, "Sir, there is no way you will get tickets to _Cheese on Ice_ tonight. They are sold out through the end of the week."

"Fine," the man adopted a sour expression on his face, "Well, I have to bring back something." He turned back to Aerial, "Can you get 6 tickets to the new musical _The_ _Hairspray Momma Monologues_?" 

Half an hour later, Aerial sent the man away with tickets to _Daisy's Spoon Harmonica Band_.

"May I help the next person?"

Aerial looked up to find the rude man from the elevator.

"Hey, Elevator girl! Baby, you must be a light switch, 'cuz every time I see you, you turn me on!"

She just glared at him, then called "Next person!"

"Come on, baby. I'm just trying to be yours."

"I'm not looking for anyone three intellectual levels below me. Next!"

The man stayed in front of the counter, "Oh, you're one of those girls. Baby, if it's intellectual you want, I can be that." He took a deep breath, "I wish I was a derivative so I could lay tangent to your curves."

"Security!" Aerial yelled.

*****

Katana McCoy entered her bar, a patched up Kinta in tow, and immediately twitched under the conditions.

There was some blond twit crooning like some Terran pop star from the 2000's. It was enough to make a girl cry.

"This cannot be," she muttered under her breath. She turned to Kinta. "I know you said you're allergic to alcohol. Does that mean that you can't mix drinks?" she asked, fully expecting a 'no'. Kinta gulped.

"Ah, I think I can do that..." he muttered under the Doctor's intense view. Katana smiled sharply.

"Good, I'll be _right_ back," she turned on her heel to leave, and abruptly swiveled back to look at Kinta, still standing there.

"Get to work!" she barked sharply. He jumped, and scurried behind the bar, dealing quickly with the exhausted patrons seeking refuge from the caterwauling in beer.

A few minutes later, Kinta's jaw dropped as a vision in a classy red cocktail dress entered the bar. He sharply pulled it back in when he realized it was Katana herself. Katana sat at a bar stool for a moment, crossing miles of legs, complete with inches of death-defying heel.

"A shot of JD, barkeep," she stated, flipping back a mass of dark brown hair. He scrambled to get a glass in front of her. He watched in awe as she threw it back, then grinned.

"I'm off to kill the witch. Ta," she gracefully alighted from the stool, and he watched in something resembling both utter amusement and abject terror as she strode like some forgotten predator of ages past toward the piano.

He continued slack-jawed as he watched her politely wait until the end of the number, and then whisper something into the lounge singer's ear. He then saw her go pale, and dash out of the room, looking like she'd burst into tears. Katana smiled, and took the dropped mike.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in the room, we at the Hotel Columbia would like to sincerely apologize on behalf of your ears." There were some scattered chuckles as she draped herself artistically on the lid of the grand piano, and she whispered something quickly to the Bolian piano player.

"I'd like to perform for you a personal favorite, 'As Time Goes By'," and she smiled widely as the music began to play.

"Play it, Sam," she crooned lightly. And as she began to sing, Kinta's jaw dropped again.

A few sets later, and quite a few more oldies dragged out of the closet later, Kinta was polishing glasses, and the bar was closing up, but there was still a throng of young men centered around the piano, trying to chat up Katana.

Who, at least from what Kinta had gathered in his experiences with her (all few hours), was being unpersonably charming and giddy. She laughed at all the right things, and smiled at no one in particular too long. It wasn't until the tall African looking fellow had escorted a few lingering men out with the promise she'd be there tomorrow, and then sat to chat with Katana did Kinta dare to venture over.

"... 'are you tired? Because you've been running through my mind all night, baby.'" He saw Katana make a face. "I was really tempted to say, 'In these heels, *babe*, I don't think I could handle a slow jog.' Do all you guys use those?" She saw Kinta hovering.

"Oh, Kinta Sun, Cray Whickman, Cray, Kinta," she said, motioning to both men. "Cray's Sec/Tac on the ship," she addressed to Kinta, and turning to Cray, said, "Kinta's been zapped by the Peanut Man here too, so, he's just hanging with us and stuff." Both men nodded, and Kinta sat down.

"So what was that about running?" he asked. Katana chuckled.

"All my bad pickup lines." She made another face. "'My lenses turn dark in the sunshine of your love.' Do people actually *think* before they say things anymore?" Cray laughed loudly.

"I thought the best one was that little dude," he said, and scrunched up his face. "'You're like a dictionary, you add meaning to my life!'" Katana and Kinta laughed.

"I think the worst I've ever heard was, 'Baby, you are the finest thing in the world. I could put you on a plate and sop you up with a biscuit.'" Katana laughed hysterically, slapping her hand on the table, and Cray nearly cried.

Many bad pick up lines later, the trio walked out of the bar, and escorted Katana back to her room (five male attempts to purloin her enroute later), and decided to call it a night, after a very long, stupid, time-travel-y, bizzaro-land day.

*****

Sarah was pushing her cart full o' mini shampoos and soaps back to the depot trying to figure out how she could spy on actual people. The search of the rooms had turned up nothing worth noting, and now Sarah was exhausted. Unfortunately for her, she ran into Kinta, Cray, and Katana. Katana was now wearing a red cocktail dress with pretty sequins. This required explaining. And a lot of it. 

"Katana, what are you doing? I thought you were tending the bar."

Katana shrugged. "Kinta needs a job, right?"

"I have a feeling that's not why you left the bar."

Katana flipped her waved hair dramatically. "It's not my fault the hotel cannot hire singers that don't sound like dying cows."

"Tell me she isn't dead or injured."

"She's fine. Physically."

Sarah pushed past them. "I don't want to know. I heard nothing." 

Katana grinned, and then so did Kinta and Cray.

*****

Ocala'Dhael did not have the highest expectations for the next few days as she and the Federation delegation walked out of the conference room. There was no way that the Romulan and Federation governments could agree here, which was perfectly alright with her. Her mouth quirked out of its impassive line as she remembered that strange meeting from the night before last.

~*~

It was only their second night at the Hotel Columbia, and Ocala'Dhael was lost. She had gone down to the lobby to ask for a wake-up call the next morning. It appeared the bellhop who had given her directions to her room was quite confused, because she was now in a dark hallway with no other people. Scratch that, one other person. There was a man leaning against the wall underneath one of the few lights. He was a large fellow, and she wondered if perhaps she shouldn't just turn around and attempt to retrace her steps. She would have, if he hadn't called her name.

"Excuse me?" Ocala was thrown off-balance by the fact some strange man knew her name, and her danger alarm was going off.

"I said, Lt. Ocala'Dhael. Of the USS _Deity_. We need to talk." The man pushed off the wall and started towards her. He had both hands in his trench coat pockets, and because his back was to the light she couldn't make out his face.

"Talk? About what?"

"About the fact that you can't let these negotiations succeed."

Ocala'Dheal felt her eyes narrow and her frown deepen. "Why not?"

"You would be signing the execution writ of the Romulan Empire." The man wasn't very far from her now, only about 2 meters away.

"How do you figure that?"

"I'm from the future. I _know_ what's going to happen. You're the only one who can stop it." 

"Why me? And why should I believe you're from the future?"

"Why you? Because your Admiral Reston is never going to be able to see reason unless you make him see it. And as for your doubts about my origins..." He tossed her a small device. "I think you'll find that to be well beyond your technology."

Ocala took the tricorder from her belt and scanned the object, eyes darting between the screen and the man. It had a Starfleet energy signature, and was made from Federation materials, but she had never seen anything near its sophistication. Knowing she was beaten, she turned to the other half of the conversation. "Admiral Reston isn't going to listen to me, even if I tell him space is cold."

"He'll listen because you'll make him listen. He knows you're the only one who knows what opposition is thinking. And you're going to tell him you don't think they can be trusted, if you want civilization for the Romulan people to survive. Think about it." He started to walk past her.

She turned around. "But--" He was gone.

~*~ 

The less she had to argue with Admiral Reston, the better. It was no secret he didn't really like her (not that she liked him), and she didn't want to meet his temper.

***** 

Sarah was chatting with Butler Barbosa around noon when his pager beeped. He excused himself and saw he had a request for room service on floor six.

"Oh, I have to go up there to clean, I'll bring it up for you," Sarah offered.

"Would you? Thanks."

And so, she was off...

*****

And so another round of debates started.

Ocala had decided to simply observe this time, simply watching the Admiral and Romulan butt heads over every issue imaginable. Neither side was willing to budge, and Tempest eventually gave way to boredom. She cast an amused glance at him. Who could blame either one of them? It was boring. She had started to scan a PADD, when the talks caught her attention.

"...we will adjourn to discuss the proposal." The Admiral and Romulan shook hands. She turned to Tempest.

"What did I just miss?"

"Well, it appears they've come to some agreement, and now we're going to look it over and vote. I'm just glad they have something they both want and are willing to concede. I miss the _Deity_." He stood to follow the Admiral to their private room.

"Wait!" Ocala'Dhael stood up and scrambled after them. The door shut behind her.

The Admiral was in a good mood. This must be some good deal he worked out. And she would have to stop it.

*****

The Admiral sat down behind the round table that had been provided for them. He settled into the plush chair, leaned back, and covered his face with his hands, letting out a sigh. Ocala felt a twinge of sympathy towards him. These peace talks were really starting to take their toll, and she could see that in his eyes. She felt bad for the guy, despite how much she disliked him. And then she remembered that she had to make sure this didn't go through. Oh well, he would have to hold off on being happy for a while. Tempest sat down and she followed suit.

"Well, the Romulans have made an attractive offer. I see no reason to discuss it any further." He beamed at his two companions. "We should be back on the _Deity_ by the morning and heading towards home." Ocala cleared her throat.

"Um, sir, permission to speak?" He nodded permission.

"Sir, with all due respect, I would like for us to hold off on agreeing to this for another few days." 

"Why? We already have the best offer we can get, and I don't want to risk losing it." He propped his head up with his hand. "No, we go back out there and seal this."

"No!" 

Her sudden outburst brought a startled look from the Admiral and a slightly bewildered look from Tempest. She knew he was going to be mad with her when she finished, but the safety her people demanded she see this through. _Sorry, Tempest,_ she silently pleaded. _Please, forgive me._

"Sir, I strongly believe that I can work out a few extra deals with the Romulans. After all, I am one of them. And, with all due respect, I believe they have cheated us anyways. What they are giving up is that worthy to them. When I was part of the Empire, those worlds that we are redefining as part of the Neutral Zone, they had everything valuable extracted from them years ago. They're worthless!" The Admiral reflected on her words. He didn't know whether to believe her or not. The Federation had absolutely no information on these new worlds. Geological surveys from years ago said that the mountains were full of dilithium and deterium, valuable resources. But that was from years ago. He mulled over his options.

"Fine. We'll request 48 hours to check everything out with Starfleet. I don't want any bells to go off, so do whatever you want to do discretely!" His eyes pleaded with her. "I'll talk to the Romulans with our request. Dismissed." 

She gave the Admiral a winning smile. Or at least tried to. It was more of a tiny grin that she was sure wasn't convincing. As she left, Tempest followed.

"What was that?" 

"What was what?"

"You have no clue about those worlds, do you?"

"Of course I do." 

"No, you don't."

"Yes I do. Besides, it can't hurt to check it out, can it?"

"Yes, it can. The Federation doesn't care about those worlds and any resources on them, or lack thereof. We just want the expanded Neutral Zone. Every time we come in and try to expand it, someone screws up something. We need this now." Tempest grabbed her arm, and she turned to face him.

"Well, Tempest, then why did the Admiral agree? Apparently, Starfleet has some interest." Tempest's mouth opened, and then closed.

"Listen, Ocala, I don't know what you're planning to do, just, don't screw this up. There's a lot riding on this, from the Federation's survival to your career." She tried to look as serious as possible, nodded once, and left.

* * *

"Romulan Ale, please." Ocala'Dhael motioned to the server, who retreated to fetch the drink. She was sitting, alone, in a dark corner of the bar. The waiter brought the drink. She sipped from the tall glass, and then coughed. The bartender smirked in her direction, and Ocala scowled. It had been a while. The one thing she missed about the Empire was the Ale. Too bad it was illegal in the Federation. She sighed, and downed about half of the glass in one gulp.

And without any coughing.

Impressive.

She glanced at the chrono. 2310. He was late. Ocala pulled out a PADD full of stats from the last review of the _Deity_'s systems. They would need to be overhauled when she returned. She started pulling up duty shifts. The new security system needed to be installed too. She had designed it herself, and the _Deity_ was to be the test subject for it before it was released to the armada - no, she corrected herself - the fleet.

Ocala'Dhael was engrossed in her reading when a man sat down across from her, in the darkest part of the table. It wasn't until he spoke that she noticed him.

"Ocala'Dhael, daughter of Tremok." She slowly looked up, and eyed the Romulan with suspicion.

"Funny. I thought I was just daughter of Celina, unregarded child of Tremok. I hadn't realized that you were just starting to acknowledge me as your daughter again. Am I not a source of shame for you?" Ocala finished with a sneer.

"Ah, you have spent too much time among the humans, _paenhe_." Ocala looked shocked at the term of endearment used for a favored child. "The humans have caused you to become too aware of your emotions."

"What happened to your famed Romulan passion?"

"We are a passionate people, but we carefully mask it from others. Remember what the Praector Valir used to say: 'If knowledge is power, than to be unknown is to be unconquerable.'" He leaned over the table. "If I know what you want, what you need, than I can control you on my whim." A smile crept over his face.

Ocala reflected quietly on his words. She hated talking with her father. Or any Romulan for that matter. But he made her blood boil more than any other Romulan. They unnerved her, despite the fact that she was half them. Drawing a breath, she closed her eyes and collected herself. _Stick your anger aside, meditate on it later Ocala,_ she gently chided herself. Opening her eyes, she saw Tremok looking at her, bemused. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of him being right about her emotions, so she didn't say anything. It wasn't until she had sipped her ale that she broke the silence.

"Well?"

"Why did you call me here Ocala?"

"Come now, Father, tell me something about back home."

"There is not much to say."

"What about Bel'Va?" Bel'Va, Ocala's older sister, was the daughter of Tremok and his Romulan wife, Velker. Three years older than herself, Bel'Va had been in the intelligence field when Ocala'Dhael had left. She had always been the favored child out of Tremok's many children.

Tremok sighed. 

"She died. About a year ago. After passing her training, she went out on an intelligence mission. Into the Cardassian Union, no less. What reasons were behind it, I don't know, but they must have been powerful. It didn't take the Cardassians long to find her, torture her, and return her broken soul back to Romulus. She died in the government's facilities two months later."

Ocala'Dhael couldn't help but let out a small gasp. The 'government's facilities' meant that she had gone insane. That was the only way that the Cardassians would have returned her, a sign or their superiority, no doubt.

"I'm sorry..." He waved her off.

"No need to be. She died for the glory of the Empire..." His eyes had a reverent glow to them, and then it faded. "Anyways, back to business." Flustered by the news, Ocala took a second for the shock to fade before continuing.

"I've seen what the Federation is offering you."

"Yes, it is an attractive offer."

"No, its not. The technology Starfleet is giving you? It's worthless. I wrote those intel programs myself, and they are not what the Admiral says they are." Tremok thought over her words.

"The Federation would not give us defective technology. We would discover it quickly and retaliate." 

"But that's where you are wrong. Its specs are impressive: the discreet scanning, excellent bio readings, ability to gain access to some command codes, and everything else is top of the line. I know the Empire doesn't have it. What Starfleet isn't telling you is that while the program will easily integrate into your systems, it will return false readings. When a Starfleet ship uses the program, it is already equipped with a sigma wave emitter that throws the scans. Sigma waves haven't even been looked at by the Romulan Empire. The sigma waves are incredibly powerful, hard to harness; they can penetrate shields, dig into every corner of a ship. The program will accept the gamma and delta wave emitters that warbirds and scouts use, but those aren't powerful enough. You'll get readings, and they will look much better than the ones you get with your inferior programs, but they'll be wrong, off by just enough that you can't tell. And it will kill every infiltration you try to use it on. I know how lax the Empire tests these things. They throw new technology on ships immediately, too anxious to try it out first. You won't catch it till a ship tries it for the first time. No doubt on some Cardassian Galor class ship. And when you send the minimum amount required to beat their fleet and try to disable their shields with codes, you'll still be locked out. And then, my dear father, you will have lost some valuable resources. No doubt that the Rhinnasu people will be angry, possibly revolt. News of your failures against the Cardassians have reached me in the Federation. Several captains were talking about it. I didn't even have to read the Romulan news to find it out. That is where my program came in. They asked me to build it, wanted to know if it would not work, and I complied." She stared at Tremok, his eyes wide.

"Impossible! Treason! You've committed treason against the Empire!" He stood up, knocking his chair over. Luckily, the bar was vacant except for one or two drunks, and no one appeared to take notice of the argument. 

Ocala'Dhael waved a finger at him, smiling. "Father, Father...temper. You don't want to let me know your needs...so I could control you? No?" He sat down.

"It isn't treason, because when I left, you deleted me from Romulan records. I no longer exist as a citizen, just a random half Romulan someone categorized. It's better that way. I don't want any part of the Empire anymore. Besides, do you really think I would have told you all that if I wasn't trying to help you? Come now, I'm not some junior Starfleet officer who's trusting of everyone." Her father's eyes widened again. "I'm telling you about this because I don't want this treaty to succeed."

"So you have betrayed your loving Federation? Are their politics too soft for you?" Tremok asked with a sneer. Ocala just shrugged.

"No, I fully believe in the Federation's mission, but I have strong reason to believe that this is not in their interest. Unfortunately, the Admiral in charge is too old-fashioned to see that times have changed, and out policies must also. Appeasement isn't always right." 

"So you want war with the Empire?"

Ocala held up two hands. "No, I'm simply saying that I think there should be no treaty right now. You know as well as I that Starfleet won't give anything else up except this. It's all or nothing. Either you take the technology and shut up, or no treaty." She watched as this sunk in with Tremok. He stood, the dark crimson robes of a diplomat billowing behind him.

"Well, we certainly won't put up with that!"


	5. Chapter 5

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 5~_

Keei looked at the two Vulcans staring at the pool, then back to her fellow lifeguard, who shrugged. She took a deep breath.

"Well, it's like this. . ." The redheads face went through disgust all the way to glazed shock, as Keei explained about the comfort of the water, comparing it to the womb, and from skinny dipping to free fall nookie and somehow all the way to swimming as a sport.

" . . .And that's why it's fun!" The Vulcans turned a nice shade of seaweed green and hurriedly excused themselves. The diminutive officer put her hands on her hips.

"Wow. So uptight. Even _Sarah_ would have known I was joking." The other lifeguard declined to comment.

*****

Ocala'Dhael dressed herself in her diplomatic robes slowly. Today was the big day, her chance to see if her bluff paid off. The programs Starfleet was giving the Romulans were indeed pretty rough; most were Beta's of ones they now used. And it would deal such a crippling blow, but what was diplomacy without a bit of lying?

Once everything was on, she took a deep breath and headed out to where the meetings were going to be held. She just hoped that whatever the Romulans did, her name wasn't brought up. Most of them were already suspicious of her origins; how many half human half Romulans were there running around, especially in Starfleet. And as much as she hated her father, she knew that it would deal a huge blow to his image and position. He didn't need that now.

Carefully, she opened the doors to the diplomatic chamber. It appeared she was the last to arrive, and everyone watched as the hybrid Starfleet officer walked down the central carpet and took her seat amongst her peers.

*****

Keei sighed and sprawled in the lifeguard chair. Nothing. Not _one _stinking emergency.

What the Hell were they supposed to be preventing anyway?

An assassination? From what she'd heard no one had tried anything.

A bomb threat? Not happening.

Some evil, yet seductive creature rising out of the pool and tempting the diplomats to do the mamba naked in the lobby?

". . . . I can only hope."

*****

When Sarah arrived on floor six, she was very pleasantly surprised to find the occupants of this room were part of the Romluan delegation. Putting on her best "face" and pulling her hair tightly over her ears, she knocked staccato on the door. "Room service and housekeeping!" she said loudly. 

The door opened to reveal a man who must have been an aide. His eyes narrowed, and he appeared to be searching for something out of place about her. She pulled the cart (_which_ _had enough food to feed the entire delegation_! she thought excitedly) into his view, "Your order, Mr.-" She held up the PADD and pretended to have difficulty as she read the name. He yielded, and she pulled the cart carefully into the room. She then returned to the hall to retrieve her cleaning supplies and entered the room again. No one in the room had a said a word yet, and all were trying to act like they weren't watching her. Sarah went into the bathroom to clean, and only then did they begin again. It's not exactly a common talent, speaking Romulan, so they didn't seem to mind that Sarah was listening, and she didn't mind either.

"Tremok, I do not _care_ what this... delegate... has to say! If we do not ally ourselves with _someone_, the Empire will be destroyed." In the mirror, Sarah could see a man stand. This man must have been Tremok.

"This bargain is not good enough either! Why would the officer try to sabotage this treaty unless she knew it was an attempt to cheat us from our due? If we only gave her one thing, it was honor."

"She is no more a Romulan than that woman cleaning our bathroom," said a woman. "Even if she was raised by us, she left the Empire! Where is the honor in that?" 

"Who are you to decide who has turned traitor and who has not?" a quiet man asked. The woman just shut her mouth and puffed her cheeks a bit. "I agree with Argelian. We should take this bargain, even if it is not as good as we might have hoped. We need a strong ally, and I would see only the Federation as being able to keep their end of the bargain."

The first man she had heard, Argelian, Sarah supposed, spoke then. "Exactly! We are can fiddle with the details in treaty later, with force if necessary. We need a treaty now if we are to be able to sustain minimal losses." 

Tremok shook his head. "The Praetor will not be pleased if we settle for less than is due to us. Besides, Ocala'Dhael will not allow it." Sarah nearly dropped her load of used towels. Katana had mentioned that name as someone who was a Federation delegate but could throw back Romulan drinks without blinking. She had to find Katana.

*****

*Text in is in Japanese.

"Thank you ladies, gentlemen, Ferengi- you're a wonderful crowd- we're going to take a short break, but we'll be back soon!" Katana stepped off of the mock stage, the green dress slinking after her. She sat on 'her' stool at the bar (much like 'her' chair on the bridge) and tapped the counter. Kinta passed her a glass of water which she sipped at comfortably. Her perfectly manicured eyebrows quirked as Ocala slumped into the chair next to her.

"Where's that green stuff at?" she asked tiredly. Katana smiled as Kinta went to the 'special interests' section of the bar. Katana's eyebrow of weird-stuff-o-meter went up another notch as Sarah did her version of a frantic run, i.e. a brisk walk, into the bar.

Sarah sat down on the other side of Katana, leaned over and whispered, "You know what?" Katana smiled.

"Well, I know 'I don't know' and 'Who', so why shouldn't I know 'What'?" Katana replied and Sarah gave her a funny look. Sarah then shook her head slightly, and whispered again out of the corner of her mouth,

"I know who's messing up the negotiations," she started. Katana raised an eyebrow. 

"Dude, you're sitting next to me, you could talk normally..." she said slowly, as if talking to a mentally impaired person. Sarah wanted a headache reliever. Badly.

"She's sitting right next to us." She resumed in her supersneaky!speech. Katana's jaw dropped, and at speeds beyond light, she looked at Ocala for a moment, then back to Sarah.

"What? Shut up!" she cried. Sarah resisted the urge to grind her teeth. 

Idiot. she replied tiredly. Katana, catching the hint, switched to Japanese.

How'd you find that out? she asked. Sarah frowned.

From the Romulans.

You trust them!

At this point Kinta was studiously avoiding looking at either of them, and a few people, Ocala included, were watching the two women rapidly converse in a dead language in a very public forum.

It's not like they told me, but they told me.

What? Frustrating little devil woman!

I was eavesdropping!

Oh, that sounds familiar... 

"_Urusai_." Sarah nodded to Ocala. "Introduce me? And pull your jaw in while you're at it." Katana sighed. 

"Sarah Cosmo, Ocala'Dheal. Ocala'Dheal, the devil incarnate." Ocala raised an eyebrow, as Sarah remarked,

"I resent that, really." Katana grumbled.

"You resemble that." She said and looked between the two women. "You've met now? Good, grand, I've actually got works to do." 

As Katana stalked back to the stage, a whirlwind of green satin and high heels, Ocala and Sarah looked at each other, both simultaneously cursing their social ineptitude.

In a last ditch attempt at civil conversation, they both simultaneously said, 

"Uh... Hi."

*****

Ocala'Dhael watched quietly as Sarah Cosmo ordered another drink. Conversation had dropped off after the 'hi', and they had both been watching the bartender, taking sips of whatever happened to be in front of them. Bored, Ocala decided to take a stab at talking again.

"So, do you work here?" Sarah's eyebrows arched.

"You could say that." A pause. "And you?" Ocala motioned towards the Starfleet garment for her response.

"I'm with the Federation delegation here to settle the peace treaty with the Romulans." She took another gulp of the fiery liquid. "And they're really starting to get to me."

"Ah. Not going well?" 

"No. Romulans and humans don't belong together at all." Ocala realized the irony of that statement as soon as she said it. 

Sarah Cosmo only arched another eyebrow and drank from her glass.

*****

"Why do you say that?" Sarah asked. 

"That's none of your business," Ocala said, perhaps a bit too harshly. She softened a bit. "Why did you want to meet me?"

"I don't think that's any of your business, either." Sarah stopped and Ocala seemed a bit deflated. "But, I suppose I could offer the olive branch here. I'm actually quite interested in what you all are doing here. I suppose you know about the protests?"

"What are you, their leader?" 

"Actually, I think they're wrong." Sarah paused for a moment to let this sink in and then continued, "I think the only way anything positive will be achieved is if we come to an agreement with our enemies, whether we 'belong' together or not." 

"And what do you know about it? There are many long term consequences of a treaty like this."

"I know. But I also know we can't go it alone, and neither can the Romulans." 

Ocala fought the urge to say anymore. She wasn't going to reveal her position anymore than she already had. She wasn't even supposed to have an opinion, officially.

"Madam Delegate,"

"I'd really rather not be called 'delegate,'" Ocala stuck in.

"Alright, Lt. I am familiar with the idea of discipline, and I know military discipline can be one of the most strict varieties. Why would Starfleet send a person opposed to the treaty to negotiate it if they wanted her to speak her mind?"

"You make it sound like I'm not supposed to be anything more than a mindless vegetable."

"I'm trying to make it sound like maybe Starfleet knows something you don't that makes this treaty more important than you think it is, and they want _you_ to negotiate it because of your history, not because of your opinion."

Ocala narrowed her eyes. She hadn't met anyone who would say something like that unless they had a high rank or were incredibly stupid. Of course, she found that these two were anything but mutually exclusive, and they usually invited each other. She didn't really know what to make of this woman. So, she changed the subject.

"That language you were speaking earlier, what was it?"

"It's just an ancient Earth language."

"...Does it have a name?" 

"It's called Japanese. It's barely spoken today, only in the most rural of places."

"And how did you learn it?"

"I taught it to myself." Sarah sipped the Dew in her glass. "Why the interest?"

"It just seems a bit strange that someone who teaches herself dead languages and has such deep insights into the diplomatic process is a maid." Ocala waited, hoping Sarah would slip and say something wrong. 

Instead Sarah shrugged. "I suppose I'm just young yet." She threw back the rest of her drink. "It was very nice speaking to you, Lt. Ocala'Dhael. I hope we can meet again sometime in the future."

Ocala just sat there and watched her go, not really sure what to think. Well, it's not like some naive little girl was going to change her position on the treaty. Ocala too drained her drink and left the bar. She had a lot of planning to do.

*****

Keei was about to give up and go crash on one of the lobby's couches when she smelled it. That aroma, the one thing besides chocolate guaranteed to bring her running.

"PIZZA!" She was out of the lifeguards chair like a shot startling one tanner and sending a nearby Room Servitor diving for cover, she followed the enticing scent out of the front doors and into the mob of people gathered outside the hotel.

She elbowed her way through to the large table where there were thousands of pizza boxes, spread out, newly opened. Moving with the crowed she lunged and caught up an extra large slice of her favorite kind, Hawaiian.

"Seriously Rick, why are we here? It's not like those delegates are going to listen to us. They're probably not even here." The tiny Science officer's ear perked up. Oh ho! So there was dissension in the ranks eh? Better help that along.

"They're _not_ here. That's just what the government _wants_ you to think. It's actually actors. the _real_ negotiations are taking place on a ship up there somewhere." She gestured skywards and bit into her slice of heaven. The boys were looking at her now, along with some other protestors nearby. She put on her best "Innocent Face" and swallowed.

"Trust me! I work here." There were some discontented mutterings and those that had heard moved off to confer. Using this chance to get back to safety, Keei slipped back into the hotel and smiled.

"Confusion to the enemy."

*****

Katana was perturbed. She hadn't considered the possibility that someone might just change their mind and therefore change the future. "Why can't it be simple? Like, someone's gonna die and we save them so they can negotiate the treaty." 

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Because _that's_ easier." 

They were backstage during one of Katana's breaks and Sarah had just repeated everything she and Ocala had talked about. 

"Listen, Elenna's the psychologist. I just have people skills. Why don't you go talk to her."

"Okay, fine. Don't let the good Lt. disappear."

"I won't. Promise." Katana grinned, and Sarah felt slightly uneasy. But then Katana went back on stage, so Sarah had no choice but to seek out Elenna.

*****

Elenna had a funny look on her face, the type of look that did not bode well for the Captain.

"Er-- Well, maybe, um, you could... Look, I really don't know a lot about this woman. And you can't tell me much about her, so I don't know what her possible motives might be."

"So you need more information?"

"Yes."

"Okay. I can do that. You keep thinking on it." Elenna nodded, and Sarah left the small laundry room they had been using to talk. She ducked into the storeroom where the crew had stashed their period clothing and reappeared ready to go out onto the street. She needed special skills for this job.

***** 

"Captain, I must say again, I really don't think I am qualified--"

Sarah tried very hard not to lose her temper. She was talking to Haioden, but it wasn't going anywhere. "Listen to me," she cut him off, "I _know_ what your talents are. You are not gaining anything by denying it. As a matter of fact, you are making things worse and I am just a little bit desperate at this point. If we do not do something within the next 24 hours the delegations will go home and we will have lost our chance as well as our future. So. Are you going to help me, or will I have to find a more effective way of persuading you?"

Haioden sighed. "I will help. What must I do?"

Sarah smiled a tiny bit. "I knew you'd come around. Now, what I need you to do is..."

***** 

"You want me to what?"

"I want you to hack into the Romulan government's records and change them," Sarah said to Toru as if he were a very slow child.

"You're kidding."

"I am not."

Toru gave her a look. "You know, this is one of those times I wonder if you haven't hit your head too many times."

"You've been talking to Katana too much. It's actually quite simple."

"Oh?" 

"i-Erreah's records are so old, no one will be looking after them."

Toru narrowed his eyes. "I don't think you understand exactly how hard it is to get into the Central Records, from a Federation ship no less."

"Are you saying you can't do it?"

"No. I'm covering my butt. Now point me in the direction of the fake records so I can plant them."

Sarah was a bit surprised, but she wasn't one to argue, so she gave him the files. "Here you go. Have fun." 

Toru rolled his eyes. "Oh, I will, don't worry."


	6. Chapter 6

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 6~_

About four hours later, Toru discreetly sent a message to two waiting men on the surface.

"That's the final go-ahead," Cray said as he received the communication. 

"Ah, good. The sooner we start, the sooner we can finish," Haioden said as he got up from the bench. They were in a local park, and it was a beautiful day; it was sort of a shame to leave it.

"If you don't mind me asking, sir, exactly how did you get chosen to tail this diplomat?" Cray asked after about five seconds of excruciating silence. He had been wondering since the Captain had informed him of their plans, but he had been able to keep his curiosity from bubbling over until now.

"Captain Cosmo is convinced that I was once a member of the Tal Shiar." 

"Were you?"

Haioden stopped and turned to the man at his side. It was an interesting contrast to any observer, because Haioden was a bit under one hundred years older than Cray. "Whether I was or not, it is not for you to know, nor is it for you to question. We are doing a job, Lt. Whickman. Nothing more." 

This was the only time in Cray's limited experience with the elderly Romulan that he had been anything other than the most pleasant person in the galaxy, and it worried him. He decided not to say anymore. Because it was true, they were there to do a job. And he couldn't think of anything more important than figuring out why this woman had changed her mind and doomed the future.

*****

Leaving the bar, Ocala'Dhael turned a corner and ran into another cleaning woman. Excusing herself - she was feeling particularly charitable - Ocala brushed past the maid and headed up to her room. She looked around the room in a paranoid fashion, weary of everything, despite the fact it was inanimate.

Not wanting to trust her surroundings, Ocala conducted a sweep of the room, looking for any bug that with have been left by anyone. She didn't really want to believe that everyone was out to get her, but after today, she didn't know what to think. That cleaning woman downstairs was...different.

Ocala hadn't grown up on Earth, but she knew enough about it to know that Japanese was dead. Really dead. Anyone who knew that language must be crazy, or incredibly smart, or a spy, or an assassin, or a - there went her imagination again.

_C'mon Ocala,_ she gently scolded herself. _You're here to stop an agreement from happening between the Federation and the Romulans, not look for spies in all the wrong places!_

Walking into the bathroom, Ocala washed her hands in warm water, briefly enjoying the feeling of the liquid pouring over her skin. Drying her hand off, Ocala carefully changed into civilian clothes. Although she was a Romulan born and raised who had rejected that part of her heritage, she still enjoyed wearing the clothes of one. Ocala found them much more comfortable than the jumpsuits and such that were fashionable on Earth. Digging through her suitcases, Ocala pulled out a deep purple tunic and pulled it over her head. It fell to just past her waist. After pulling on flowing black pants that reminded her of yoga clothing, she slipped on some black boots and a cinched a black belt around her waist. Looking into the mirror, Ocala'Dhael surprised herself with how Romulan she really looked. Sure, she had pulled out the shoulder pads, because that was one Romulan fashion she couldn't contend with, but she looked the part. It almost made her feel like a small girl back on Romulus, sitting in her father's estate... 

Gathering some work PADDs together, Ocala piled them into a black side bag, along with her communicator and a few book PADDs. The constant reading for preventing this agreement was getting to her, and nothing helped relax her more than pouring over old Earth literature. Choosing carefully, Ocala'Dhael threw in Dante's _Inferno_. 

Just before she left, Ocala turned back and dropped the bag on the bed. Pawing through her things again, she pulled out a small knife, which she concealed beneath the flowing sleeves of the violet tunic. Allowing herself a brief smile, Ocala pushed the sheath up a bit more, and then pulled the sleeve back down. The Starfleet grab normally earned her the respect due, but parading around in the outfit of a native Romulan while there were negotiations afoot could bring about trouble. The only other Romulans she had seen were the dignitaries, and she didn't want to be caught in the middle of something unarmed because of her low appearance. Slinging the black bag over her shoulder again, Ocala headed back downstairs.

On the way, she spotted Tempest, who was looking a little put-off. She tried to brush past him, but he grabbed her arm.

"Ocala, why have you been avoiding me?"

All of the possible responses swirled in her mind: because she was busy, because she didn't want to talk to him, because she was scheming against him. Instead, she chose to remain silent.

"Come on," he said. They started back down towards the bar. When they were finally on the first level, heading towards the establishment, he slowed their pace and struck up the conversation again.

"Ocala, I don't get what's going on with you. Every other diplomatic mission I have ever brought you on, you have always performed admirably. I've never questioned your techniques. Until now." His blue-green eyes bore into hers. She raised her chin so she could meet the gaze right on.

"I'm afraid I don't follow." 

"Postponing the agreement? You must be crazy to let that one slip!"

"No, I believe it was in our best interests. We were being cheated."

"And what does it matter? Peace with the Romulans has been needed for a long time. At what price it comes by is really of no significance. So we gain empty space! At least there will be no warbirds haunting us in the Neutral Zone, no scouts tailing our Galaxy class ships. What price are you willing to put on the people's lives, Ocala?"

Her mind churned with his speech. For a moment, she sympathized with him: it was her duty to Starfleet serve them. But then again, it wasn't what she wanted. She was about to blurt out the unknown to him when a maid came up to Tempest.

"Excuse me, sir. There was an accident in your room with one of the cleaning ladies. We need you to come look..." Tempest tried to hold his anger in as he strode off. As the maid headed off after him, Ocala recognized her as the maid from the bar, the woman who spoke the dead language. And she could have sworn she winked at her. Clearing herself of momentary shock, Ocala continued course to the bar to not get much work done at all.

*****

After an excruciating few hours, Haioden nudged the half asleep Cray. "She's on the move."

The pair followed at a distance, not wanting to be spotted. 

***** 

Ocala'Dhael was lost deep in thought and was just going where her feet took her when she realized she must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. She was back in the hallway where she had first seen the mysterious man from the future. Cursing her lack of focus, she began to turn around.

"Lt. Ocala'Dhael. We meet again." 

She turned back. It was the same man as from before. "What do you want? I've sabotaged the treaty. By tomorrow morning we'll all leave. Isn't that enough for you?" Ocala did not appreciate being manipulated by this man, and she felt no qualms about letting him know it.

"I want you to know you're being followed." 

*****

"Uh-oh," said Cray. He and Haioden were close enough to hear the conversation, but far enough away to be out of sight.

"I believe that is an understatement, my young friend." Haioden looked pensive for a moment. "I supposed we'll have to play it by ear. Continue scanning that man."

***** 

"Followed? Why would anyone follow me?" Ocala pretended to be surprised, but she couldn't help thinking of the strange maid. Maybe she wasn't as paranoid as she thought.

"They would follow you because they are against me. They want the Empire to be destroyed, so they want to thwart me and convince you to the approve the treaty. But you will not do it."

Though Ocala had no intention of changing her mind, she was annoyed enough to ask defiantly, "Why not?" 

***** 

"Definitely a Quartle, sir."

"So he's the one who messed everything up, eh? Whickman, I am going to subdue him. You send a message to the _Empire_, then follow her. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Haioden disappeared into the shadows, and Cray was left all alone to carry out his duties.

***** 

"You won't because they know I've told you the truth, and they will not try to tell you otherwise."

"Right." Ocala had already lost patience with him. "Thanks for the tip, I'll just be going now." And she turned around and stalked away. Woe be to whomever was following her, because she was in a bad mood. 

*****

As the officer walked towards him, Cray found he didn't know what to do. Should he run the other direction and catch up with her later? Should he walk by casually and then turn around? Indecision seized his mind a few moments too long, and he found he had no where to go. It was at this point that he realized the woman was carrying a knife. Mainly because it was at his throat.

"Who are you?" she hissed at him.

"Me? Nobody. Just going down to the supply closet to get some..."

"You are a bad liar, Human. Give me one good reason not to kill you."

Honestly, Cray didn't think she would kill him. But it wasn't a good idea to take chances. He had to act. "Because it would be a tragedy to spoil my good looks?"

She looked at him for a moment, then took the pressure of the *very* sharp knife off of his throat. "You are no threat to me. What is your name?" 

"Cray Wickman. You know, just an average everyday guy..."

She hauled him off the wall by means of his shirt and then jabbed her knife into his back lightly. "An average everyday guy who, no doubt, can find someone to vouch for his innocence if we go back to the lobby."

Cray swallowed hard. He didn't think it was the best idea, but he had no choice. "Right. After you." She pushed harder. "Or maybe I'll lead." What would the other officers say? What would the Captain say? What would Karlenn say? He was in trouble.

*****

Keei finished her pizza and watched one of the diplomats pushing some one through the door. She blinked, that wasn't right! The guy was leading the diplomat, yeah that was it...no...it wasn't. Keei sighed.

"Midori to the rescue." She bounced up to them.

"_There_ you are!" She shouted shaking and admonitory finger at the very frightened looking man.

"I sent you out _ages_ ago!" She beamed her brightest smile at the dangerous looking lady behind him.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am, He's such a ditz." The lady blinked.

*****

Keei continued to babble. "He didn't bother you, did he? You were only supposed to go to the kitchen to get me a lemonade. How did you get lost doing that?"

Cray decided he had better play along. "I went down the wrong hallway, and then I was confused, and then this lady stopped me." He tried to add with his eyes, _with her knife!_ Unfortunately, it seemed as though Keei missed the unspoken message. Or maybe she didn't care. 

"Thanks for finding him. Last time I had to look for him for three hours until I found him on the tenth floor!"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Midori."

"It's okay, dear." She put her hand on his shoulder in comfort and began to lead him away, but Ocala, quiet for the whole exchange, smelled a rat. She stepped in front of them and pointed her knife at Keei.

"I do not believe you."

"Well, I'm sorry about that, but I'm kind of busy..."

"Um. Ms. Midori, I don't know if you know how sharp that knife is..."

"Cray, I've got it. Listen lady, we've got no quarrel with you, so can you please put away the knife?"

"Not until you explain to me why he was spying on me."

Keei turned to Cray, genuinely surprised. Nobody told her anything. "You were spying on her?" She realized he wasn't going to lie to her, so she changed the subject a second later. "Look, I'm sure he was just in the wrong place in the wrong time."

"I heard one of the spies call the other 'Whickman.' You are Whickman, are you not?" 

Cray swallowed hard. What was he going to do? 

*****

Kinta was cleaning glasses and whistling to himself. Despite his painful injuries, the bartending job was pretty low stress. During the day. He was drying them when Katana came out from backstage.

"Guess what?" she said, a little more than grimly.

"What?" Kinta asked, good mood evaporating.

"Sarah says Haioden didn't check in when he was supposed to. Maybe he and Cray found something." After a moment she added, "We should go look for them."

Kinta hesitated. "I don't think..." 

"Don't be so stuffy! C'mon." Katana pushed off from the bar and headed for the door. And then she stopped dead. "Kinta," she whispered, "you'd better come here."

Kinta paled when he saw Keei and Cray being threatened with a knife by the one person they couldn't mess with. "I think we should call Sarah."

"Yes. You do that. I'm going to make sure no one gets killed."

*****

"Keei. Cray. What are you doing out in the middle of the lobby?"

All three turned to look at the formidable Katana. Katana also noticed that behind them at the desk, Aerial was looking mildly terrified as she spoke quickly into a communicator. _Looks like she beat Kinta to it_, Katana thought to herself. At least they had five of them to handle this diplomat. 

"Katana McCoy. You know these two?"

"I do. Why are you threatening them?"

"Because the man was following me."

Katana thought a moment to herself before realizing it was entirely possible that this woman could be a master spy and could smell a lie twenty kilometers away. "Was he? That's not very nice, Cray."

"I'm sorry, Ma'am."

"No apologies to me. I think Lt. Ocala'Dhael is the one who deserves the apology."

"I'm sorry, Lt."

Ocala narrowed her eyes. "I still want to know why."

"And you shall. Why don't you put the knife away, and we can go inside the bar and tell you all about it." Ocala replaced the knife to its hiding place.

"Let's go then."

As they turned to leave, Katana nodded to Aerial, signaling her to come too.

***** 

Kinta poured the different drinks in silence as Ocala stared down the others. When he brought them, the woman decided she had already been much to patient. "What are we waiting for?" 

"Not what so much as who," Sarah said, startling the woman. She had just beamed down, and she looked like she had just rolled out of bed. A bed in a wind tunnel. "Sorry it took me so long."

"You should have taken a little longer. You're a mess," Katana said bluntly.

"Thank you, Katana. I'll remember that the next time you ask me if I think you look fat." She sat down. "Cray, where is i-Erreah?" 

"He went to follow the Quartle, Ma'am."

"He missed the check in. We're... worried." Cray just sat in silence as he let the words sink in.

Ocala took advantage of the silence to butt in. "You are behind this? I knew it."

"Lt., please. You don't know all you think you know."

"I know that you have been spying on me. I know you are no maid. Which means those here probably also are not what they appear to be."

There was a pregnant pause.

"You're right. We're not what you think we are." 

Katana grabbed Sarah's arm. "You're not going to tell her?" Sarah's silence was the answer, and Katana let go, determined to trust her captain ever if she had come up with a really bad plan. "Don't blow it."

"Lt. Ocala'Dhael, I am Captain Sarah Cosmo and this is my senior staff." Ocala looked up and noticed a few more faces had appeared rounding the number out to the standard nine. "We work for a Starfleet taskforce that will not exist for another hundred years. If you do not support this treaty, it will never come to exist." Ocala stared on and said nothing. "You don't believe me. Here," she took out a PADD and her small silver ID card. "That proves I am who I say I am and what I just told you."

Ocala carefully scrutinized the ID card, looking for forgery. "Twenty-_three_ sixty-three? Captain, you may be a Vulcan but if you were born in 2363 you would be at least--"

"328 years old. Yes, well, there's an interesting story behind that as well, but you will find my ID to be stamped, watermarked, verified, the works. Read the PADD." 

Ocala read, and as she read she realized what trick had been played on her. "That swine."

"Do you understand why we were following you now?" Katana asked. "We needed to understand why you had changed your mind so as to right history again."

Ocala said nothing for a long moment. "But you have just broken the Temporal Prime Directive by telling me this. Aren't you afraid I'll change the future?" 

"No, because we know they're going to kill you as soon as we leave," Toru said. All eyes turned to him. "They found Haioden, Captain."

"He's not...?"

"No, he's fine. He was in their base, which happens to be conveniently located in an ion storm. But he heard what he needed to. After the lady diplomat defeated the treaty, they were going to kill her to make sure another one could never be negotiated."

"It's folly to think I'm that important."

"But you are," Keei said. "After I started using the pool for catching tachyons, I found they're different now. Your choice has already rippled out to affect our future."

"You must pass the treaty through, Lt. We will protect you for as long as we are here, but there's no telling how long that's going to be." 

"Captain, that man is coming again," Sig said almost casually. The officers began to scatter.

"You mustn't tell Captain Tempest what just happened. We'll be in touch."

***** 

Tempest turned the corner, looking for something to stop him from thinking of the perpetual problems with this job. He was a bit surprised to see Ocala sitting all alone.

"What's up?" 

"Nothing. Except..." She took a deep breath. "I think we should take this offer."

"What?" Tempest asked, genuinely surprised. "Not that I mind, but why the change?"

"I have given your words thought. You were right."

Tempest stood suddenly. "We're going to the Admiral now before you can change your mind again." He hauled her up by the wrist. As they walked through the lobby, he called to the woman at the front desk, "Get the Romulan delegation up and in the conference rooms. We've got something!"

*****

Tempest dragged Ocala'Dhael up out of her seat, calling to the receptionist to gather the delegation. He started to haul her in the direction of their separate rooms, and then decided that changing into formal robes wasn't a priority at the moment. They ran straight into the Admiral on the way, causing him to stumble back. He was still securing the pips on his uniform.

"Draconis, what is this all about?" Tempest helped the Admiral to regain his balance.

"Well, Admiral, sir, it appears that my Lieutenant here believes that the treaty is a good idea after all." The Admiral squinted at her.

"Is this true?" He laughed. "So, the half-Romulan has come to her senses and stopped protecting her people! This is good. Very good!" Ocala knew he was being good-natured for the sake of the Federation, but his degrading terms enraged her. Instinctively, her hand tightened on the handle of her blade. She was about to withdraw it when Tempest's voice reached her ears, snapping her back to reality.

"Ocala? Aren't you coming?" Tempest was a few meters away, looking at her. The Admiral was still walking down the hall. Forcing a smile, she removed her hand from the knife's hiding place.

"Of course."

*****

"Why now? Why change your mind?" The Romulan was bent over the table, hands splayed on the polished top. The Admiral shrugged.

"We only waited before because a diplomat of ours was not in agreement. However, we have talked it over, and the group believes that there are benefits, so we are now in accord."

For a second, it looked as if the Romulan bought it. He turned towards someone - Ocala couldn't see who - and whispered something. With a nod, he turned back to the Federation delegate.

"We have it on very good authority that this bargain is one sided. Apparently, these programs that you are giving us...are faulty."

Tempest merely raised an eyebrow. The Admiral was much more amusing, standing up so quickly his chair fell.

"I refuse to believe that!"

"We have it all right here." The Romulan slipped a PADD over. With a quavering hand, the Admiral picked it up. He turned towards Ocala'Dhael, mouth opened wide, face beet red.

"Where did they get this?" He hissed. She shrugged her shoulders, hoping it would be enough. Buying it, he turned back towards the Romulan. "You also know that those sectors you are giving us - they're worthless! What's the point of this anymore!" On that note, the Admiral slammed the PADD down and proceeded to pick up his chair and sit down, arms folded. Turning slightly, Ocala whispered into his ear.

"Admiral, I don't know where they received that information, but if we want to hold this thing together, we need to find something to give them. And quick." The Admiral nodded, thinking to himself.

"What if we give you back one sector? Will that be acceptable?"

The Romulan's lips curved in a murderous smile. "As you mentioned yourself, Admiral, it is worthless." Ocala turned towards the Admiral again.

"What about shield modifications? Warp technology?"

"Why are you so anxious to give up our secrets?"

"Admiral, with all due respect, I have a better idea of what's going on right now than you. Please, we need to close this in any way we can!"

And for the second time, the Admiral played off of her instincts.

"What about warp modifications? We could boost your speed up a full warp." 

The Romulans considered it carefully. Ocala saw her father rise from the right of the head negotiator. He smiled in her direction. It was rather crooked and looked odd on him. Smiling never was his forte. A team huddle ensued, and they came back 20 minutes later with the verdict.

"We accept."

And as hands were shaken and words shared, Ocala quietly slipped out of the conference hall. Her father, noting his daughter's departure, sent someone after her.

***** 

Ocala turned down another hallway. She had lost track of where she was going 10 minutes ago. The feeling that someone was following her prompted Ocala to try and shake him. Where was that group from the future? Of course, they had probably expected her to leave with everyone else, and she had blown it. Deep in thought, Ocala'Dhael ran straight into a wall. She rubbed her eyes once, and then looked to see what direction to go.

Except that they were everywhere.

Five tall Romulans wearing the pips of the Tal Shiar closed in around her, forming a small prison.

And just before she was knocked out, Ocala'Dhael looked up into the hooded eyes of her father.


	7. Chapter 7

***Time Is Too Slow…***

_~Chapter 7~_

Aerial sighed. It was 2130 according to the clock behind the counter, and Aerial couldn't wait to go to bed. She'd explained to her coworker, "The company moved me here without enough warning to find a place to stay; especially with all the rioting, there's no one doing real-estate."

And much to her relief was told "We'll find you a room right here; the privilege of working in a hotel."

Rina, as the girl's name was, ran for a minute over to the front desk and returned. She appeared back behind the counter and slid a room key to Aerial, "In case management asks, I wasn't involved."

"No problem." Aerial agreed with a smirk, "Thanks."

Rina shrugged it off with a grin, "You seem like a nice girl, I can stick out my neck for you once." She turned to the counter with a painted-on smile and yelled over the crowd "Can I help the next person?"

Aerial finished with the guy from room 206's request for 6 pillows and took a phone call order for room service, telling them in a sickeningly-sweet voice, "Next time you can dial directly to room service and not bother me by dialing 77. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy the twelve dollar pudding."

The line was dying down & the crowd in the lobby was dispersing to their rooms. Because the hotel front doors were closed with the rioters outside, the uninvolved vacationers were bored out of their minds, and giving the Concierge Desk a lot to deal with. Aerial looked at the clock again, 2152.

"I can go to bed at 10, right?" she asked Rina wearily.

Rina nodded, "The night shift will show up then and we're done for the night."

"Yay," Aerial mumbled, yawned and turned to the last two people in her line. The first was a business man she'd seen three times already that day - and she informed him yet again that he wouldn't be able to leave, but could use an open conference room to call into the important meeting he was missing. When she'd finally chased him away for the night, promising to have the desk call him in case the riots ended overnight, she turned around and started to gather her things.

A cough behind her prompted her to turn back to the counter. "Oh, I'm sorry, how may I help you?"

She looked up to find a familiar face; the nicer of the two men in the elevator. She braced herself for inappropriate comments, but received, "You forgot I was here?"

"I'm just in such a hurry to get to bed! I haven't slept in a lot of hours! I just arrived this morning! I'm sharing too much about me. What can I help you with?"

"Well, I was going to ask if you wanted to go for a drink, but since you are headed straight home, I guess the answer's 'no.'"

She nodded, "Thank you anyway, but no."

Before she could dismiss him, he continued, "I don't mean to sound like a stalker or anything, but I've been watching you for a while now - I just can't take my eyes off of you."

She gave him a blank look, "Now, if you'll excuse me--" She picked up her bags and walked around the counter to leave the lobby. He stepped in front of her,

"If it wouldn't be too forward, could I walk you home?"

*****

Keei strolled back to the lobby, passing the newlywed couple who were now arguing over which was better, Puce, or Lime. She shook her head and decided to loiter in the weight room, catch up on lost gym time. She turned the corner and stumbled backwards as someone rammed into her.

"Sorry!" She opened her mouth to answer but the figure was already striding away. Having had, in the past, a light-fingered little brother Keei automatically checked the pockets on her shorts. Her eyes widened. 

"My PADD!" It had romance novels, solitaire high scores and the inventory of her chocolate! . . . as well as the details of their mission. She sprinted after the pickpocket who, after glancing over his shoulder, also broke into a run.

"STOP THIEF! THIEF!"

*****

The Midnight Galactic Kiddy Scavenger Hunt had just commenced. Teams of joyful youngsters troubled by the confinement with the hotel burst into the lobby. The best way to minimize the noise level was to limit the area in which the hunt could occur. Planted items covered the lobby. Elenna walked out among the kids. "I'm sorry they're causing so much noise, but something had to be done to keep them from becoming truly uncontrollable," said Elenna to the passing couple. Elenna noticed Aerial trying to avoid the swarm of kids. "Arelliaka, I'm glad that you were able to stay to help with the scavenger hunt," commented Elenna.

"Actually Ms. Súprimes I was heading home to get some sleep," replied Aerial.

"Could you wait another hour and keep an eye on these kids? It will be considered as overtime," Elenna entreated.

"I guess so," sighed Aerial. She had really wanted to get to sleep and the mass of screaming kids wasn't helping. A young man with a PADD in his hand sprinted into the hive of frantic children. Keei appeared around the corner screaming, "Stop thief!" Elenna screamed over the din, "A special prize will be given to the team that retrieves the lifeguard's stole item." A fury of kids began chasing the thief.

*****

Keei's eyes widened as the kids swarmed the PADDnapper bringing him down, and several began arguing over who had gotten to him first. Using the confusion the disguised Science Officer sat on the mans back, ignoring his pained "oof". 

"Who hired you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Keei grinned evilly and stood.

"Hey kids! He's volunteered to play with ya'll!"

"What! I did no-" he was cut off as a multitude of sugar hyped kids played their favorite game, 'Jump on the adult'. Keei smiled at the little girl who'd wrenched the PADD out of the thief's hand and handed her one of the large chocolate bars she'd gotten from the vending machine.

"Split it with your team." She then knelt down, smiling as the pickpocket's face contorted with each thump.

"Who. Hired. You. You didn't just pick me at random, as a lifeguard my PADD has nothing of value. Why would you take it?" the man grit his teeth and glared. Midori shook her head tsk-ing.

"I'm afraid I'll have to bring out the big guns then, Mr.PADDnapper."

*****

"Ugh." Aerial sighed, "Babysitting?"

Elenna stared at her, a mix of pleading and ordering.

"If I have to." Elenna nodded and hurried away before Aerial could change her mind. _I'm so tired..._ She mumbled to herself. Looking around, she took measure of the chaos. _Maybe it won't be soo bad...if they all stay occupied...beating that man..._ "Wait! Are they beating that man?" She called after Elenna, but it was too late - she'd left. 

"Babysitting?" A question from behind her startled her. Aerial whirled around to find the elevator guy still behind her, his question still hanging in the air.

"Yes, I suppose I am."

"Could I possibly help you out?"

Aerial shot him a suspicious look, "You're persistent, aren't you?"

"I just want to be helpful...and I'd like to spend some time with you."

"How do you know that? You don't know me."

"I couldn't stop thinking about you all day."

_He sounds so sweet, but…_she thought. "And seeing me in my bra?"

"Didn't hurt." He grinned sheepishly. "But I'm sure there's a whole lot more too you then that - a whole lot more that I want to know."

"Nice save."

_Decisions, decisions..._ she thought to herself. "I'll give you one chance - as long as you help control the rugrats."

*****

"Hey, whoa, what?"

Haioden turned around to look at Cray, confusion apparent on his face.

"She, um, disappeared," Cray said quietly, as if it were some sort of explanation.

"What?"

"I said--"

"I know what you said. We have to find her. Where was she last?"

"In the same back hallway as when we followed her. That place seems to be no good..."

"Whatever you say, my young friend," Haioden said as the door opened to let him through.

"Wait!" Cray called as he hurried out the door, It was about time things came to a head.

*****

After an hour and a half of Barney songs it was revealed that the poor pickpocket was indeed, just a poor pickpocket. Keei sighed.

"It's not fair. You steal my stuff, I go through all the trouble of chasing you down, with help, and you're just doing it for money? Yeesh." She took her PADD and continued on her way to the Weight room.

"I wonder how everyone else is doing?"

******

Captain Cosmo was none too happy when she was woken up. Again.

"Er... Captain?"

"Yes, Ensign?"

"They lost her."

"Joy."

*****

=/\=Empire to Stellar=/\=

"Stellar here."

=/\=We're beaming you up. We've got some rescuing to do.=/\=

*****

_Where am I?_

Darkness. Everywhere.

Ocala's head felt - it was an odd sensation. Trying to place it, she decided on a mixture of feeling too heavy, and as if she couldn't quite articulate her thoughts. Like that time she had been half drunk on bloodwine during that party back when...when had it been, exactly? She shook her head, unable to answer he own question, but it only made her mind throb painfully.

Suddenly, the strong stench of an _aefnumn_, a plant indigenous to Romulus, a delicacy. Its pungent aroma was enough to make Ocala'Dhael sway slightly where she was seated on the ground. Wafting around here, she felt at home in the pitch black of somewhere.

It was enough to clear her head. With a start, Ocala remembered the cloaked Romulans, being kidnapped, the delegation, Tempest.

_Tempest_...

She needed out. Now. Tempest would be worried sick about her. The admiral could probably care less, including the vast majority of Starfleet. But Tempest...

Ocala stood up and started running blindly in the hopes of finding her way out, or at least seeing light. After a few seconds, she ran head on into a rather large object. Jumping back, she carefully extended her hand, until she made contact with the warm surface. Moving around, she discovered a metallic feeling and knew it at once. How many times had she walked up to her father and laid her hand on his chest hoping for some comfort? Recoiling quickly, Ocala retraced her steps until she was where she started, or she thought she started.

"Tremok."

No answer.

"Tremok!"

From every direction, lights focused their blinding beam on Ocala'Dhael's slim figure. The shadows of the hulking guards - larger then your average Romulan - stood still. The light was so focused that Ocala couldn't see the room - if that's what it was - she was encased in. Frozen on the spot, Ocala tried to draw in a breath, bring her shoulders back, make herself look taller. It wasn't helping.

From the depths of the darkness, footsteps approached. Another shadow emerged to dwarf Ocala's own. Even though he was hidden in the oblivion, she could tell from his stance, and the slight stooping of his shoulders from age.

"Ocala'Dhael. Like the bird you were named for, you stand here surrounded by the light, captured in your moment of triumph. And like your namesake, you'll be toppled here, surrounded by family and blood. You who have betrayed the Empire of its glory, and have betrayed the Federation of its loyalty. Ocala'Dhael, for the last time called daughter of Tremok, you will end here, and all you have brought with you."

Ocala froze. She was religious enough in her people's beliefs, but not attending a Romulan gathering in years made her rusty on the interpretation. Was this the ritual killing in a time of need, or the ritual killing for the purpose of revenge? Whatever the purpose, the meaning was clear: they wanted her dead.

Tremok was walking circle of guards, shadow contorting and twisting to match his steps. He stopped, and tossed something at Ocala'Dhael's feet. Carefully, she bent down over the metallic object and plucked it off the ground. The silver cover was made of _gresem_, a type of metal rare on Romulus, favored for its spiritual purposes in Romulan religion. Most of the world's supply was used in the development of items for the people's religion. Regarding it wearily, she traced her slight fingers over the engravings on the front.

_Aedhai_ _Stelam_. Temple of the Star.

The Romulan death book.

She knew this part. Regardless of how she was going to die, she was to prepare herself first. All Romulans knew the procedure, and regarded it as the highest honor, a reward at the end of their lives. For Tremok to give this to her meant much deep down, that he would give her the proper death of a Romulan, but that he felt it had to come to this was unforgivable.

"You know where you have been Ocala. Now, take the _Aedhai_ _Stelam_ and make yourself welcome to the Otherworld. They've been waiting." All of the light beams shut off except for the one directly overheard. With retreating footsteps quickening her pulse, Ocala'Dhael sat down and prepared herself for death.

*****

Katana McCoy sat twirling the straw in her glass as she giggled, a bevy of men surrounding her in between numbers. The previous red and green dresses had been traded in for a strapless black satin dress, the likes of which defied physics and conventional thought, as it usually goes with strapless dresses. She rolled her eyes briefly as they swooned, and then slapped on her distracting 'charming to be around, and charming _you_' face again. Her eyes flicked to the side as she noticed a tall African American man running into the bar. As he scanned the bar, and finally focused in on her, a little horizontal frown-y line appeared on her forehead, and multiple patrons contemplated ritual suicide. Cray dashed over, panting heavily.

"Katana, we've got a big problem. Haioden's gone all Jedi-zen on me, and now I can't find him, Ocala's missing, and we've got to _go_," he frantically said. She raised both eyebrows.

"Cray, ixnay on the alkingtay! e'reway in ublicpay!" she said under her breath as quite a few of her admirers looked at him and her, patently confused. He shook his head.

"That doesn't matter. The mission's been compromised enough as it is. You, me, Kinta, we all have to go now!" he said fervently. Katana sighed.

"I suppose the order came from her Highness herself, then?" Katana asked, not so obliquely referring to Sarah. Cray nodded. Katana stood up, smoothed out imaginary wrinkles, and waved at Kinta, who'd been watching cautiously from the bar. "C'mon boys, we'd better blow this gig," she smoothly walked through the gaggle of protesting fanboys, and turned at the door, and blew a kiss behind her.

"Oh, if you get that starved for beautiful company, and don't mind getting your ears assailed, you can call Blondie, and tell her I was joking about the communicable disease."

Amongst the chaos left behind her, Cray and Kinta gawked, and then dashed out after her into the lobby.

*****

There had been a time when this would have truly meant something to her. Perhaps as she was about to die after a long and fruitful life, sitting here reading the stories of the Otherworld would have intrigued her. But right now, the words blurred in her eyes, and her well honed Romulan mind was racing for a way out. The ultimate peril that faced those who didn't adhere to the _Aedham_ _Stelam_ was supposedly brutal in the afterlife, but Ocala'Dhael was hoping that she wouldn't get that far. Yet.

The page the book was open to described the vast expanse that would await her in the Romulan equivalent of heaven: a place that is always night, where the sky is filled with stars, and the earth with rolling pastures. And - of course - the fire. Ocala inwardly rolled her eyes. Romulans always had to have the fire, didn't they?

*****

Cray was about _this_ close to hyperventilating, which wasn't too much to worry about seeing as Katana already had the paper bag waiting. Still, he couldn't help feeling panic settle over him as the seconds ticked by and he _still_ had no idea where i-Erreah was.

"Are you sure we can't just bust into those coordinates we have?" Keei asked, obviously hopeful Sarah would change her mind.

"If we just run in there, they'll kill her. If they haven't already," Toru said, shaking his head.

"No transporters mean we _have_ to go in and get her," Kinta said, obviously trying to form a plan.

"Not necessarily. Keei, where is the interference field coming from?" Sarah asked.

"There are three generators, all outside the complex," Keei answered.

"And to disable the field, how many need to go?"

"Just one." Keei grinned, seeing where this was going.

"Can you blow it up, Mr. Whickman?"

Cray fought himself into a state not quite calm, but not needing the paper bag either. "I think so, Captain."

"And can we locate i-Erreah and Lt. Ocala'Dhael if the interference goes down?"

Keei thought before answering. "Lt. Dhael, definitely. But i-Erreah may be hard to find with all those other Romulans around."

"Does he have a commbadge?"

"He does," Cray answered. "I saw it on him when he ran off."

"I believe that solves our problem."

"Captain... Sarah... Lady... Dear, what if when they hear us shooting they kill her?" Katana put in

"Then I guess we'll just have to be quick about it. Mr. Stellar, set a course for directly above their hideout."

"Course laid in, Captain."

"Then let's go."

*****

Tremok and his buddies looked up in alarm when they heard a box of tools fall. They had been discussing quietly how the were going to get rid of Ocala's body, but now they were all suspicious. Very suspicious. Pulling out a large knife, Tremok stood and began to lurk towards the pile of tools and the shadows that lay beyond. A rustle gave him all he needed to lay his knife on Erreah's neck.

"Guess I'm not as young as I used to be," Erreah said in Romulan as he strained his neck backwards and up.

"No, it appears you are not," Tremok said coldly.

*****

Ocala'Dheal looked up in alarm as she heard a body roll past her and slam against the back wall. She couldn't see anything outside of her small circle of spotlights, so she instead chose to stay still.

"Madam Ambassador, how lovely to see you here," said a voice from behind her, presumably from whomever had just violently met the wall. The speaker was obviously not in the best of health, leading Ocala to believe he was a cellmate and not an assassin nor a rescuer.

"If you must call me something, I prefer 'Lieutenant,'" she said off-hand and without looking back at him.

"Forgive me, Lieutenant. I was just trying to show the proper respect."

"A respectful man would show himself and tell his name."

"I suppose so." There was a pause as she heard the unmistakable sound of the man dragging himself along the floor. "I am Haioden Erreah."

Ocala was very surprised. A Romulan man? Why would her father have had him captured as well? "You obviously know who I am," she replied neutrally. "Why are you here?"

"I was planning to rescue you. That is, until I was caught. Now most likely I'll be killed."

"So cheerful."

"Not cheerful. Hopeful. Somehow I think things will work themselves out."

Ocala looked at him skeptically as he lay back and tried to stop a trickle of blood with his sleeve. "I wish you could be right."

In the distance, she heard something explode. Instantly what sounded like a dozen alarms went off.

"The interference field is down!"

Ocala looked at the man. Smiling, Erreah could not resist. "Who says wishes don't come true?" And as Ocala was about to open her mouth to fire back that she was no one's fairy godmother, the transporter sparkles provided her no retort.

*****

Katana was waiting for them when the pair of Romulans rematerialized on the Empire's transporter pad. Haioden could not have been happier, mainly because blood was still gushing out his veins. Ocala, however, was a bit confused.

"Katana, what's going on?"

Katana didn't answer right away, but instead tried to stop Haioden's involuntary staining of the carpet.

"Don't tell me _you're_ the doctor."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Katana asked, not looking up from Haioden

"You just don't seem very gentle. Or qualified."

"Just because I can bartend and sing and be very, _very_ pretty, doesn't mean I can't be a doctor too," Katana said, indignant, but still moving quickly.

Ocala shrugged. "I only said you didn't seem qualified, not that you weren't."

"Well, remind me to leave you bleeding next time I find your soon to be lifeless corpse."

Katana had finally gotten Haioden under control and glanced back over her shoulder for a second.

*****

Aerial was very confused when the ship started to break orbit. She didn't think she had pushed anything, so where was the ship going? She tried to put the ship back into orbit, but it would always compensate. She was getting very frustrated when she heard Toru from the engineering console.

"Captain, our warp engine is being activated."

Captain Cosmo looked at Aerial. "Mr. Stellar?"

"I don't know, Captain. The computer seems to have a mind of its own. I'm trying to keep us in orbit, but something is pulling us away."

"Or someone. Cmdr. Midori, what's in this direction?"

"Er... space dust. Cool binary star system. And..."

"And...?"

"The Peanut People, Captain."

"How did I know?"

"Um... are you psychic?" Keei asked, the picture of confusion.

Sarah didn't dignify the comment with a response. "Let the ship go where it wants to go, Mr. Stellar. I have a feeling we're going back to where we came from."

*****

Ocala looked around once at the ship she was in and decided not to complain.


End file.
